The weather is hot. We're expecting the rainy season to start soon, and let me tell you it will be a welcome respite from this heat. Although, it will probably still be hot, and will just add some humidity. It hasn't rained (aside from the odd spittle) here in about 6 months. Malawi, according to the department of water only has 1500 cubic metres of water per person per year in ground water and river systems, which is less than the 2000 cubic metres stated by the United Nations as required for human development. Malawi's situation is unique. What happened? My friend Graham's visit to a Stephen Carr shed some light on the situation.
Who is Stephen Carr,? you ask. He is an elderly gentleman who has been working in development throughout Southern Africa for the past fifty years. He's something of a food expert in these parts. Ol' Stevie said that one of the things that makes Malawi unique is that it has a high population density with only one rainy season. Other countries in the area either have lower population densities or have more than one growing season.
So, what do we do? Malawi needs its irrigation schemes to be developed. But how, you ask, when the water is too little for full development? Hmmm, good questions. Luckily that number doesn't include the lake, which, if you include it, pushes the number up to 3000. But, that lake would have to be used quite extensively, and the infrastructure would be enormous. All the problems seem to be magnified and compouned through and through. But I guess that is life.
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