Malawi

Billy’s Clinic in Chembe Village, Cape Maclear www.billysmalawiproject.org

Billy’s Clinic as it is known locally is a rural health centre providing much needed primary healthcare services to a remote community of 20,000 people who live on the Cape Maclear peninsular in Malawi. They previously had to travel more than 20km to access any medical care at all and it is still several hours drive from Chembe village to the nearest District Hospital.

Ripple Africa is a UK registered charity based at Mwaya Beach on the shores of Lake Malawi. It empowers local communities in Malawi by supporting sustainable environmental projects in health, education, agriculture and conservation. A grant from the OAA in 2025 funded a fruit tree, vegetable and livestock project in 20 fishing villages together with an additional 5 borehole upgrades in Nkhata Bay District (see below and Autumn 2025 update for further details).

Billy’s clinic was set up in 2004 by Mags Riordan after her son Billy tragically drowned in nearby Lake Malawi. In 2007 a small in-patient unit was added and medical care is now available around the clock to the local population of subsistence farmers and fishermen thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers and locally trained care staff. The clinic has become a lifesaver especially for the many children with malaria for whom time is often of the essence. Other conditions commonly seen include trauma, malnutrition, gastroenteritis, dysentery, bilharzia, asthma and pneumonia. A separate and busy HIV/Aids clinic is run in an adjacent building.

Dr Nick and Claudine worked at the clinic as volunteers for 4 months in 2018 and the many generous donations they received before they went allowed them to replenish the clinic’s stock of medicines and equipment. They have kept in touch with the clinic ever since and get regular updates as to its day-to-day and development needs. Since 2021 the clinic has been run in partnership with the Christian Health Association of Malawi (CHAM).

During 2023, the year in which Cyclone Freddy caused widespread damage and flooding especially in the south of the country, our contacts at Billy’s were fighting an outbreak of cholera in nearby Chembe fishing village and we provided funds for several community latrine blocks to be built (see photo in the Autumn 2023 news update). These helped to curtail the further spread of the disease and improved sanitation enormously in a densely populated area where open defaecation was still commonly practiced. Then in 2024 we agreed a donation to provide specified items of equipment for the new maternity unit which is being added to the clinic to enable local women to be delivered in a safe and supervised setting rather than at home.