Mhalaunda Health Centre: How community project turned into fee-charging mission facility

What was once celebrated as a lifeline for thousands of rural residents in Mhalaunda, in Mzimba District’s Solola Constituency, has become the centre of a growing controversy, raising troubling questions about ownership, accountability, and the management of donor-funded public infrastructure.

More than two decades after its construction, Mhalaunda Health Centre built through a partnership between the international humanitarian organization World Vision and local communities is now operating as a fee-charging mission facility under Embangweni Mission Hospital through the Christian Health Association of Malawi (CHAM).

For the communities that contributed land, bricks, sand, and labour to build the facility, this arrangement has sparked anger and suspicion.

They had believed the health centre would eventually become a government facility, yet it now functions as a private mission institution.

Interviews with residents, local leaders, and health officials reveal a complex story marked by missing documentation, conflicting narratives, and unanswered questions about decisions made in the early 2000s.

Mhalaunda Health Centre was constructed by World Vision

The health centre was constructed in 2002, at a time when many rural communities in Solola Constituency faced severe challenges in accessing healthcare.

Residents often walked long distances to Embangweni Mission Hospital or other distant facilities to receive treatment.

According to both community members and World Vision officials, the project was designed as a collaborative effort to bring healthcare services closer to rural populations.

World Vision funded approximately 75 percent of the construction costs, while surrounding communities contributed the remaining 25 percent through land donations, locally moulded bricks, sand, and voluntary labour.

Residents recall how entire villages mobilized to support the project.

Edward Gondwe, a resident of Mhalaunda who participated in the construction, says the community believed the facility would eventually operate as a government health centre offering free services.

Community members during investigations

“We contributed land, sand, bricks, and labour. At that time, we were told the health centre would help us access treatment without travelling long distances. We never expected that one day we would be paying for services at a hospital we built,” said Gondwe.

Several elderly residents who participated in the construction expressed similar sentiments, describing the current situation as a betrayal of the community’s sacrifice.

Gogo Kayereka Banda said she personally moulded bricks for the health centre more than twenty years ago, hoping it would bring free health services to rural communities.

Kayereka Banda: We need also free health services we also pay taxes

“We need our hospital back. We are also Malawians, and we deserve free health services just like other people in this country. From 2002 up to now, in 2026, we have been paying for services at a hospital we helped construct,” said Banda.

Another resident, Gogo Reuben Banda, claims the cost of treatment has become unaffordable for many villagers. According to Banda, patients seeking malaria treatment at the facility are currently paying between K16,000 and K20,000.

“That is too expensive for rural people,We built this hospital so that we could receive free services like other Malawians,The government should take over the facility”he said.

While community members insist the facility was intended to become a government health centre, district health officials say they have no records supporting that claim.

When contacted for clarification, the Director of Health and Social Services at M’mbelwa District Council, Dr. Prince Chirwa, stated that the District Health Office does not possess documentation showing that the facility was ever formally handed over to government authorities.

“From the records and knowledge available at the District Health Office, Mhalaunda Health Centre has always operated under the Christian Health Association of Malawi through Embangweni Mission Hospital.

“The District Health Office does not have documentation relating to a 2002 handover agreement in our custody. Without such records, we cannot confirm that the facility was meant to be transferred to the government.” Chirwa responded.

This lack of documentation has become one of the most puzzling aspects of the controversy.

Residents insist that government officials from the District Health Office and the District Commissioner’s office were present during the construction period and were aware of the project.

According to Edward Gondwe, officials from local development structures such as the Area Development Committee (ADC) and Village Development Committee (VDC) also participated in discussions surrounding the project.

“During the time of construction, officials from the District Health Office said they had no plans to operate the facility because they lacked staff,” Gondwe alleged.

This claim raises critical questions if the government lacked personnel to operate the facility at the time, was management temporarily assigned to Embangweni Mission Hospital?

And if so, why has the arrangement never been reviewed over the past two decades?

Management at Embangweni Mission Hospital declined to provide detailed responses regarding the facility’s ownership or operational arrangements.

However, a hospital representative confirmed that the health centre was constructed by World Vision in partnership with the local community.

“We cannot respond at the moment, but we know that Mhalaunda Health Centre was constructed by World Vision and the community. You can come here at Embangweni Mission Hospital to the for further information,” the representative said.

World Vision has also confirmed its role in constructing the facility in 2002.

The organization stated that it provided approximately 75 percent of the construction resources, while the community contributed the remaining 25 percent through labour and locally available materials.

The organization said they handed over the facility to the government, not any private institution.

“We cannot construct a facility and hand it over to a private institution. No. We were complementing government policy, so we handed over the facility as a public health centre to the government,” a World Vision official stated.

The absence of clear records and transparent agreements has left communities searching for answers.

For many residents, the issue goes beyond the payment of medical fees.

It is about accountability and recognition of the sacrifices communities made to bring healthcare closer to their villages.

Communities that contributed to the construction of the health centre include villages under M’bobo Mtonga, Kayereka Banda, Mchapasalu Mtika, Chapitamuno Mlotha, Phazima Nkhambule, and Group Village Headman Chimutu Hara.

Residents from these areas provided land, bricks, sand, and labour during construction.

Amid growing tensions, the Member of Parliament for Solola Constituency, Lightwell Mahowe, has promised to push for government intervention.

“It is sad that people are paying exorbitant bills at a facility constructed through the partnership of World Vision and the community. As Member of Parliament, I will ensure that the facility is brought under government management. It is an undeniable fact that the health centre was constructed by World Vision and the communities,” said Mahowe.

The Member of Parliament also praised investigative journalism for bringing the matter to public attention.

“Let me thank Malawi24 for digging into this issue. We need such journalism that highlights the challenges affecting our people,” he said.

But despite political promises, the central question remains unresolved how did a health facility built through donor funding and community sacrifice become a fee-charging mission institution, and who made that decision?

Malawi24 investigations have found that only the under-five clinic and maternity services are free at Mhalaunda Health Centre.

Further investigations by Malawi24 have revealed a plan by the management of Embangweni Mission Hospital to prepare documents aimed at fully taking ownership of Mhalaunda Health Centre, a facility constructed by World Vision in partnership with local communities.

The plan reportedly seeks to register the health centre as a mission facility and declare the entire hospital land a mission area.

Until clear documentation and transparent answers emerge, the people of Mhalaunda say their demand is simple they want the health centre they helped build to serve them as originally intended.