About 198 Malawian students in India have asked the government for financial assistance saying they are struggling due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
According to one of the students Jairos Phiri, prices of essentials and rentals are skyrocketing and their parents back home are also struggling to make money due to the Coronavirus slowdown in Malawi.
Phiri said that they heard in May this year that government through the Ministry of Finance had assisted students, both private and government sponsored, who were stranded abroad.
“That was a silver lining that most of us rejoiced upon hearing. We contacted our embassy on the same, just to hear that they were not aware of any aid coming our way but they will find out. We kept pushing only to be told that our money is being prepared but till date we haven’t received a Tambala.
“When we saw that months are going by and things are worsening here in India, as numbers of those affected by the virus is drastically increasing, we decided to approach the government ourselves of which most ministries and offices kept pushing us back and forth, with no help,” said Phiri.
He then urged the government to rescue them and provide the funds that the government has been preparing for the students since May.
Government through Ministry of Finance in May said that it had provided K128 million to Malawian students in China who were stranded due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
