PHOTOS
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This is the face of AIDS in Malawi today. Yodam is 40 years old, works for the Ministry of Agriculture. His wife died, he doesn't know why. He remarried recently. He has been sick off and on for the last six months. He has breathing and stomach problems.
Ken "Money" Nsagwe runs a coffin business. He says business is good because of the AIDS epidemic. The problem with the business is that people don't plan ahead to buy a coffin. He has to extend credit, and if the customer doesn't pay, "you can't go and take back the coffin- it's already buried."
Vice President Justin Malewazi has had an adopted daughter die of AIDS. He urges parents to talk to their children about AIDS, advocates changing social habits, does as much as possible to mobilize the government because, "we are all living with AIDS."
Catherine Phiri founded SASO, an AIDS support organization. She has been HIV+ for 12 years without taking drugs. Catherine says of her AIDS stricken clients: "we want them to die with dignity."
Maryline Mulenba is the director of Doctors Without Borders in Malawi. She directs a pilot program that distributes antiretroviral drugs to people in villages. "People are now saying we have to do it. If not, the country goes to a real disaster. When you put people under treatment, you are really starting to break the stigma (of AIDS)."
Geoffrey Mhone is HIV positive. He was a founding member of Youth Ambassadors, an AIDS education resource for schools. When the group lost funding, Geoff found work as an AIDS counselor. Recently, Geoff has lost weight and worries what might happen to his wife and young daughter if he started getting sick.
With AIDS striking many Malawian families, parents traditional roles have changed. It is now not uncommon to see a man walking his children
The Bayobab is a common sight in the lowlands in Malawi. The trees can live many thousands of years. This tree, about 30 feet in diameter, could be more than 2000 years old. The trees store water in their soft, foam-like core which allows them to withstand the longest draught The leaves and fruit can be eaten, the bark can be used to treat fevers.
