UNFPA hands over K232m worth of motorbikes to Malawi
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has handed over 120 motorbikes worth K232 million ($224,000) to the Malawi Government to accelerate of service delivery in hard to reach areas.
The donation has been made with support from European Union (EU) under Spotlight Initiative project.
Out of the 120 motorcycles, 52 have been allocated to Malawi Police Services (MPS).
UNFPA Resident Representative, Miranda Tabifor said during the handover ceremony in Lilongwe on Wednesday that the procurement of the motorbikes will go a long way to facilitate access to services by women and girls.
“We are pleased to contribute towards gender equality and equity as a human rights issue for the reduction of Gender Based Violence (GBV), Hiv and Aids and poverty in Malawi,” she said.
Tabifor assured of her agency’s commitment to work closely with government, departments and Non State Actors to ensure that the ideals and dreams of every Malawian woman and girls is realized.
Eu Head of Delegation, Rune Skinnbach said they were concerned of transportation challenges faced by government despite the will and passion to reach out to as many Malawians as possible.
“The support given to government and the police under the initiative compliments our long standing support towards access to justice and rule of law,” he said.
Minister of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, Patricia Kaliati said the motorbikes will improve service delivery through improved mobility of the service providers at district and Community levels.
“This will improve response and delivery of sexual and reproductive health, justice and psychosocial support services,” she said.
Kaliati hailed the EU and UNFPA for the support that will improve service delivery for the protection and promotion of women and children’s rights.
In her acceptance remarks, Inspector General (IG) of Police, Merlyn Yolamu said as a main stakeholder in the fight against GBV, the donation has come at a right time when the service is looking for motorbikes for mobility to reach out to the affected women and girls.
“This will greatly assist us in our endeavor to make the women safe because there are some areas that are hard to reach,” she said.
Yolamu said the situation of GBV in the country is worrisome especially the victimization of children and need vigorous assistance for their safety.