Edicas Nachinga, is in her 80s and lives in Karonga. She looks after six orphaned grandchildren aged 18 to three years of age, and a chronically ill daughter who has two children of her own. Edicas' mud hut was one of the 1,557 houses that collapsed in Karonga following the earthquakes in December 2009. A further 3,569 houses were damaged.

Malawi lies on the East Africa Rift System

Summary: CHF 306,365 (USD295, 891 or EUR 202,502) was allocated on 14 December 2009, from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)'s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF), to support the Malawi Red Cross Society (MRCS) in delivering immediate assistance to 1,930 households (9,650 beneficiaries) affected by the earthquake that hit the country on 6 December 2009. The DREF allocation was increased to a total of CHF 591,689 (USD 570,033, or EUR 397,721) on 23 December 2009 to enable the MRCS to implement its revised

Readers may have forgotten about the string of earthquakes that rocked Karonga towards the end of last year and early this year, but for hundreds of Malawians who were affected life has not returned to normal and they are still living in limbo.

Six months after a major quake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale shook the foundations of Karonga on the night of 19 December, 300 families are still living in tents at Mwabulambo Camp,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No.1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid 3 , and in particular Article 2(f) and Article 15(3) thereof;

Whereas:

(1) The south-east African and south-west Indian Ocean region is exposed to a wide range of natural disasters, such as floods, cyclones, and volcanic eruptions,

(2) Local communities are very vulnerable to these disasters, the effects of which are compounded by socioeconomic

After a fall in mid-2009, maize prices have stabilized. However September-January prices are still high relative to pre-crisis levels.

The prolonged dry spell in the south since early December and the earthquake in the north, have affected the food security situation of nearly 300,000 people.

Different agencies agree on favourable food security in the short term, but it worsens in the long term.

The government supported poor farmers through input distribution programmes and released stocks to assist food insecure people.

World Vision Malawi immediately dispatched an assessment team to the country's northern district of Karonga following a sequence of stronger earthquakes ranging between 5.4 and 6.2 on the Richter scale from 6th to 20th December 2009. The earthquakes killed four people and injured almost 200 others. Assessments were conducted with Government representatives from Karonga District Assembly between 22nd to 24th December focusing on Nkhando zone which has been assigned to World Vision Malawi

The UKaid will be spent on providing immediate relief for the 30,000 people whose homes have been destroyed or damaged by two major earthquakes in Karonga district which killed four people in December.

Specifically it will:

Support the reconstruction of homes: Money will be given to the Malawi Red Cross to provide families with the materials they need to rebuild their homes. It will also help the government produce guidelines on affordable earthquake-resilient house construction.

The International Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) is a source of un-earmarked money created by the Federation in 1985 to ensure that immediate financial support is available for Red Cross and Red Crescent response to emergencies. The DREF is a vital part of the International Federation's disaster response system and increases the ability of national societies to respond to disasters.

Period covered by this update: 14 December to 30 December 2009.

Summary: CHF 306,365 (USD 295,891, or

After 3 months of low intensity seismological activity in the Karonga district of Malawi, the area was hit by a sequence of stronger earthquakes ranging from 5,4 to 6.0 on the Richter scale between 6 and 20 December 2009. Seismological activity continues and is taking the form of an earthquake swarm. There is no certainty about when this is expected to halt. The district of Karonga is located in the northern part of the country, bordered by Lake Malawi on the East, by the Songwe