67 years is the average life expectancy in Malawi
Malawi ranks in the global top four countries with the highest poverty, with 70% of the population living on less than $2.15 a day
50% of the population have insufficient healthcare access
84% of the country’s population live in rural areas (UNICEF, Malawi factsheet), of which 77.5% are in poverty (World Bank 2025)
Malawi is among the poorest countries in the world, vulnerable to weather-related disasters, including droughts, floods and cyclones, such as Tropical Cyclone Freddy in 2023 and an El Niño event in 2023/24. Its high dependence on agriculture exacerbates the impact of climate shocks, which contribute to failing harvests. As a result, over 5.7 million people are facing acute food insecurity, increasing the number of children wasting and those experiencing nutrient deficiencies.
Coupled with Malawi's own reduced agricultural production, following the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, 80% of households reported significant increases in the price of basic items such as maize, cassava, sweet potato, maize flour, rice, and fuel, contributing to the food insecurity emergency.
Malawi has the lowest-ranking health system of any country not affected by a civil war. It even has a worse system than many war-torn countries. Most hospitals in the country don’t have pharmacists, with just 200 pharmacists in the entire country. There are only 0.54 doctors per 10,000 people compared to 33 doctors per 10,000 in the UK. Poor transport infrastructure deters many patients from accessing the healthcare they need.
Cancer is a silent killer in Malawi amongst children, with an estimated 1,100 cases of children developing cancer annually. Yet less than half of these children make it to the hospital to be diagnosed. When a diagnosis does happen, it is often too late, reducing the effectiveness of treatment. Cancer facilities are largely understaffed in countries such as Malawi; fewer than 30% of children with cancer are cured due to a lack of access to oncology medicines, despite many of these being easily treatable.
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£5 can help us to give 15 people treatment
£20 will provide 16 children with antibiotics
£100 will provide 83 pregnant women with life saving medicine.
£450 will provide am emergency medical kit to 60 families.
Whatever you give, you could be making a life-changing, even life-saving difference to someone every month.
£5 is enough to source and send £600 worth of medical supplies a year to people in need; enough to help approximately 50 people around the world.
£10 is enough to source and send £1,200 worth of medical supplies a year to people in need; enough to help approximately 100 people around the world.
£25 is enough to provide around 750 treatments in a year, helping approximately 250 people in need; and for some, is the difference between life & death.
£100 is enough to provide medicines and supplies for approximately 1,000 people a year living in disaster-hit and vulnerable communites.
Whatever you give, you could be making a life-changing, even life-saving difference to someone every month.
IHP collaborates with its partners in Malawi to support hospitals and medical facilities by supplying essential oncology and cancer-related medication necessary for comprehensive cancer care for children. This helps give them the best chance of recovery. Additionally, IHP works with smaller medical centres to deliver vital primary medications, such as antibiotics, pain relief, and deworming drugs, ensuring safe and reliable treatment delivery.
