A sign on the studio wall said, "Free your mind, go for VCT", and "Cool guys go for VCT testing". On my last day in Blantyre I visited the radio and television studios of MBC, Malawi Broadcasting Corporation. Much like CBC in Canada, MBC is owned and operated by the government and has a wide audience throughout Malawi, especially on radio. Television is relatively new in Malawi. The last time that I visited Malawi, in 1997, there was no TV stations in the country. MBCTV aired its first broadcast about 6 years ago. However, even with this advancement, only about 30% of the country's population has electricity and even fewer have TVs. While the visual medium offers promise for the future, if you really want to reach the people the poor of Malawi, you need to broadcast your messages on radio. Sponsored by Denmark, ADRA produces programs that run on both MBC outlets. The topic? HIV and AIDS.

If it seems as though HIV and AIDS is a recurring theme here in Malawi, it is because it is one of the biggest issues that faces the country. Apart from an issue of health, HIV/AIDS has become one of the main contributing factors that keeps Malawi, as well as many other countries in Africa in a poverty trap. People who fall ill as a result of being HIV positive, are not able to work their fields, attend classes, or fill positions in the work place. Attending the sick, and the many funerals, contribute to further absenteeism. Huge investments that have been made toward the education and training of Africa's professionals, across all fields, including doctors, nurses, teachers, and technologists, are being wiped out by a disease that strikes the wealthy, educated and poor alike.


"Let's Talk", is a program that invites the people of Malawi to call in with their questions on the various issues that surround HIV and AIDS. This week's guests were two young people that had recently gone for volunteer counseling and testing. One of the important messages that ADRA is trying to get out there is the absolute importance of everyone to go in for volunteer counseling and testing, or "VCT", as it has come to be called throughout Africa. As VCT suggests, it is more then just a test to determine if you are HIV positive. Counseling is also a very big part of the program. There is counseling before the test as well as counseling after the test. For those that are negative, counseling helps to encourage a lifestyle that will help keep them that way. For those that are found to be HIV positive, counseling helps them learn how to live longer with the virus, how to live responsibly with the virus and gets them on the waiting list for the antiretroviral drugs.

For many years there has been a real hesitancy to go for testing. Because of the stigma attached with being HIV positive, people preferred not to know. Not knowing their status, the positive continued to infect others. Now, with the education that ADRA is presenting over the Radio and TV, people are seeing the benefits that go along with knowing your status, and many more people are coming in. The results are staggering. Based on recent reports, it is estimated that in the urban areas of Malawi, up to 25 percent of the adult population is HIV positive!

ADRA's "Let's Talk" programs, have become a popular starting point for discussions about the problems of HIV and AIDS. Ask anyone in Malawi, if they have heard of ADRA, and chances are they will say, "Oh yes, they have the radio and TV program on AIDS. I really think it is a good show!" For those that don't get through on the live broadcasts there is a hotline for people to call every Friday afternoon with their questions.

From the radio station we went to the TV studios where I was able to witness the live production of the "Let's talk" program, complete with an enthusiastic, studio audience. Questions were asked not only by the studio audience but by people across the nation who phoned in. While the set and productions methods may have been primitive compared to the Dr. Phil show, it was still clearly effective. Sadly, funding for these popular programs are due to run out at the end of March. ADRA Malawi is scrambling for a way to keep these much needed programs on the air.