Agreement signed on alcohol and drug prevention in Malawi

The agreement, a Memorandum of Understanding, was signed in the Malawian capital Lilongwe on the 12th of November. The Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security, Hon Earnest Malenga (right on the picture), signed on behalf of the Malawian government, while Secretary General Morten Lønstad signed for FORUT.

In his speech Mr Lønstad said it was a historic moment for FORUT and he commended the Government of Malawi for their spirit of cooperation which has contributed strongly towards getting such an agreement after not more than one year of dialogue between the parties.

- We are honoured that FORUT has been chosen as Malawi’s partner in prevention of alcohol and drug problems, and we can promise that FORUT is committed to contribute towards fulfilling the intentions and ambitions of the MoU that we are now signing, said the FORUT Secretary General.

The new Memorandum of Understanding is outlining the ambitions, intentions and motivation for the cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Malawi and FORUT. The parties have the common understanding that alcohol and drugs are obstacles to development and that it is important to develop evidence based alcohol policy and local prevention strategies to combat the harm of alcohol and drug.

In the Memorandum the following areas of cooperation have been defined, and these will addressed jointly to the extent that resources become available:

• Research and documentation;
• Eradication of Cannabis Sativa;
• Competence-building;
• Strengthening of law enforcement institutions and the IMCDC;
• Policy development;
• Mobilization and awareness-raising.

The following representatives of the two parties were present at the signing in Lilongwe on the 12 of November, in addition to the Hon Minister and the FORUT Secreray General: (second line from the right): Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security, Martin Mononga; Project Manager in the same Ministry, Trevor A.V. Chande and Ståle Stavrum, International Programme Director of FORUT Norway (Photo: Paul Henrik Kielland).