By Tanaka Chirombo, HIV/AIDS and SRHR facilitator, Youth and Society
In Malawi, three in 10 girls aged 15–19 have had—or are expecting—a child. Half of these girls will be married by the time they are 18-years-old, and only one in five will have a comprehensive knowledge of the risks posed and what they can do to avoid contracting HIV/AIDS. These are numbers. But behind each statistic is a young person navigating the realities of life, and the complexities Malawian youth face in making decisions that will shape their futures. Through this photo series, please join me as I step into the lives of Malawian adolescents living in Thunda, a rural village in northern Malawi. These images offer a glimpse into what it looks like to live in a remote area. This is what it looks like to have unmet needs in accessing health services. And this, for so many adolescents and youth across my nation, is what it looks like to live a day in the life as a young Malawian.
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An adolescent couple and their toddler chat with a friend. The friend is in secondary school, but like so many adolescents and girls, she faces a heightened risk of dropping out of school due to unintended pregnancy. |
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Two adolescent girls walk to a traditional healer—what Thunda residents refer to as a witch doctor—to access health services. It’s a popular practice in rural areas even if, in most cases, the visit doesn’t deliver the intended results. Witch doctors lack medical knowledge and proper equipment to perform procedures or administer the right herbs. Some witch doctors blame the patient for causing his or her sickness. This often dissuades or blocks young people from accessing the information and health services they need. |
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Thunda’s village headman Mr. John Nyirenda and his wife talk to their grandson about his life and health while tending to the crops. In Malawi, parents and grandparents are key influencers who inform how adolescents make decisions about their bodies and their futures. |
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A girl chats with her friend, who has dropped out of school. Many girls stop attending secondary education due to pregnancy or marriage. In areas far removed from the big cities, and without job prospects for those who do complete school, some girls say that they don’t see any benefit in completing their education. |
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A young boy molds bricks to earn a living. High fees for school exams cause many young people like him to drop out of school. |
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Adolescent girls pass time by chatting after completing their household chores. In Malawi’s rural villages, it’s beautiful to watch how young people talk together and help each other. |
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This young boy dropped out of school. He now farms to earn money, which gives him spare cash to grab a drink with friends. |
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Unlike government-run hospitals—the closest of which is 48 miles from Thunda—services at mission-run hospitals like this one are not free. In rural parts of Malawi, health services and staff are limited, and medical equipment may be outdated. |
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Unfriendly healthcare providers result in many young people turning to friends, rather than health workers, for all things contraception. But gleaning information from friends means that young people may not receive the correct information on how to properly use and dispose of contraceptive methods like condoms. Moreover, rural Malawians may often feel they don’t need to use condoms given a widespread belief that sexually transmitted infections are only found in towns, rather than villages like Thunda. Only one in two Malawian girls aged 15–19 uses a condom to reduce her risk of contracting HIV. |
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Many young rural Malawians play games in their free time. Social interaction is a core part of how rural youth live their lives. |
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Youth in rural Malawi walk great distances to school, which deters girls and boys alike. But the risk of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) for girls, in particular, is high. Sixty-five percent of girls in Malawi experience GBV in their lives, including heightened risk for rape as they pass through the bush. |
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Bawo is a traditional mancala board game played in many parts of East and Southern Africa. Thunda men—young and old—gather to play. It’s a safe space for young men to raise questions about their health, family planning and what’s best for their futures. |
All photo credits: Tanaka Chirombo
