Calling the relationship between Malawi and the Seventh-day Adventist Church “unique and strong,” Ambassador Tony Kandiero, Malawi’s ambassador to the United States, thanked the Adventist Church for its contribution of education, health and humanitarian aid to his country. Ambassador Kandiero’s remarks came during a visit to the Adventist Church world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, on August 8, where he met with church leaders.
“Without the church’s investment in our country, both materially and spiritually, many of our people would have died from lack of medicine,” said Ambassador Kandiero. “Thank you, on behalf of my country.” He called the programs of the Adventist Development and Relief Agency International “a concrete example of the kind of operation that exists to benefit our country.”
Responding to the Ambassador’s comments, Pastor Jan Paulsen, president of the Adventist Church worldwide, said that health care, education initiatives and development aid are integral to the Church’s work in Malawi and around the world. “These are not values that are dragged reluctantly along behind us,” said Paulsen. “They are at the front and center of our mission, important pillars in everything we do. We are very deliberate—keenly interested—in enhancing the quality of life of the people we serve. This, we believe, is an act of obedience to God.”
Malawi, located in eastern Africa, shares borders with Tanzania, Zambia and Mozambique. The country gained independence from Great Britain in 1964 and now operates as a parliamentary democracy. “With great pride, I can say that, in spite of poverty, our country enjoys political stability,” said Ambassador Kandiero.
Calling the social and economic challenges facing Malawi “enormous,” the Ambassador acknowledged that the urgent needs of his country’s more than 10 million residents cannot be met by the government of Malawi alone. He referred to specific challenges facing Malawi, including the country’s international debts, high rates of HIV/AIDS, lack of technological and social infrastructure, and the need for a more inclusive education system. According to 1999 U.S. government statistics, average life expectancy in Malawi is 36.3 years, and only around 55 percent of the population over the age of 15 can read and write.
“Against this background, we value the kind of relationship we have had with the Adventist Church—a relationship that has allowed us to move forward together for the benefit of the people,” said Ambassador Kandiero.
Unlike other African nations such as Nigeria or Rwanda, Malawi is noted for its lack of religiously motivated violence and the generally harmonious relations between its Protestant, Roman Catholic, Muslim and indigenous religious populations.
“In a very profound way, Malawi is a God-fearing country; this is at the forefront of our political thinking,” said Ambassador Kandiero. “But we believe very firmly that this is ‘God-fearing’ in the sense that each of our citizens personally understand the concept of God.”
Malawi has a commitment to the ideal of individual human rights, said Ambassador Kandiero, and this is evidenced both in their constitutional provision for religious freedom, and in the day-to-day operation of the government which is based on the “rule of law and good government practices.”
The Adventist Church has been active in Malawi since 1924, and there are currently more than 160,000 Malawian Adventists worshiping in 550 churches and companies. The Adventist Church in Malawi also operates four schools, more than 20 hospitals, clinics and dispensaries, and one publishing house.