Kasungu
Coordinates: 13°02′S 33°29′E / 13.033°S 33.483°E
Kasungu | |
---|---|
![]() ![]() Kasungu Location in Malawi | |
Coordinates: 13°02′S 33°29′E / 13.033°S 33.483°E | |
Country |
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Region | Central Region |
District | Kasungu District |
Elevation[1] | 4,403 ft (1,342 m) |
Population (2008 est.)[2] | |
• Total | 59,696 |
Time zone | +2 |
Climate | Cwa |
Kasungu is a town in the Kasungu District of the Central Region of Malawi. The population of Kasungu is estimated to be 59,696 as of 2008.[2] Kasungu is approximately 130 kilometres (81 mi) north-west of the capital of Malawi, Lilongwe, and is 35 kilometres (22 mi) east of Kasungu National Park.[3] The main industry in Kasungu is tobacco-growing.[4]
History
A farm close to Kasungu was the birthplace of the first President of Malawi, Hastings Banda.[4]
Geography and climate
Kasungu is in central Malawi, lying at a height of 1,342 metres (4,403 ft). It has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cwa) and a rainy season that lasts from November–December to March–April.[1] The dry season lasts from May to October.[3] The town receives, on average, between 500 millimetres (20 in)–1,200 millimetres (47 in) rainfall each year.[1]
Climate data for Kasungu | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 22.4 (72.3) |
22.4 (72.3) |
22.4 (72.3) |
21.4 (70.5) |
19.3 (66.7) |
17.0 (62.6) |
16.9 (62.4) |
17.5 (63.5) |
20.6 (69.1) |
22.5 (72.5) |
22.9 (73.2) |
23.1 (73.6) |
20.7 (69.3) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 213 (8.39) |
215 (8.46) |
125 (4.92) |
32 (1.26) |
5 (0.2) |
2 (0.08) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
1 (0.04) |
4 (0.16) |
49 (1.93) |
176 (6.93) |
822 (32.37) |
Source: Climate-Data.org[5] |
Demographics
Year | Population[2] |
---|---|
1987 | 11,591 |
1998 | 26,137 |
2008 (est.) | 59,696 |
Language
Facilities
Transport
Kasungu is served by buses and minibuses that travel to Lilongwe and Mzuzu.[3] In June 2008, Central East Africa Railways announced plans to extend the rail line from Lilongwe to Kasungu.[7]
Amenities
There are guesthouses, bars, restaurants, and four petrol stations in Kasungu; according to Lonely Planet, there are "no major attractions" in Kasungu.[3] Kasungu National Park is an hour's drive to the west, and Kamuzu Academy is 25 minutes by road to the east.
Emergency services
Kasungu has a police station.[8] The town is also home to a 179-bed government-funded district hospital. The hospital is often overcrowded, and suffers from a lack of nurses and anti-retroviral drugs.[9][10] The hospital's 13-bed paediatric department can receive over 100 patients, leaving some patients on the floor.[11] UNICEF-Hamburg has sent over US$6000 to train care-workers in Kasungu.[12]
Land and economy
The land in Kasungu lacks nutrients and water, and is mostly "sand veld";[4] the Kasungu area is suffering from depleted forests.[13] A tribal chief stated in 2004 that over 250,000 people in Kasungu own no land.[14] Tobacco is the only cash crop grown in Kasungu district,[1] and the area has been described as a "tobacco heartland" by Xinhua News Agency.[15] The opening of Kasungu National Park in 1970 has increased tourism in the area.[4] Due to their poverty, most residents of Kasungu live in houses made of hand-made dung bricks, covered by roofs of straw or corrugated iron.[16] According to AllAfrica, Kasungu is a "child labour hotspot."[17]
Politics
Kasungu is a "stronghold" of the Malawi Congress Party.[18] The Member of the Malawian Parliament for Kasungu Central is Carrington Jimu.[19] The MP for Kasungu North North West is Rodger Sithole,[20] and the MP for Kasungu North West is Gerald Jere.[21]
Foreign links
Kaluluma School in Kasungu has formed a relationship with Greenford High School, Southall, England.[22] A church in Kasungu also formed a relationship with two churches near Peterborough, England in 2001. Parishioners from the two churches have travelled to Kasungu several times and have built a new church and a fish farm. In February 2008, the church group built a maize mill in Kasungu.[16]
Notable events
Famine and disease
Over 100 people died in a famine in 2002, according to official estimates; Kasungu was the worst affected area in Malawi.[23] In 2005 a famine occurred in Malawi, affecting 4.2 million Malawians. The efforts to distribute food to the needy were concentrated in Kasungu.[24] During 2004 and 2005, there was an outbreak of cholera, with eight people recorded to have suffered the disease.[25]
June 2003 riots
In June 2003, Kasungu Muslims rioted with police, after five Malawians, suspected of being al-Qaeda operatives, were arrested and taken into United States custody. One demonstrator was treated for "serious gunshot wounds".[15][26]
Chess championships
In January 2008, the African Junior Chess Championships were held at Kamuzu Academy near Kasungu.[27] The academy, which The Nyasa Times describes as "highly regarded" and "Eton in the bush", was founded by the first President of Malawi, Hastings Banda.[28]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 Thangata, Paul H.; Hildebrand, Peter E.; Gladwin, Christina H. (2002). "Modeling Agroforestry Adoption and Household Decision Making in Malawi". African Studies Quarterly. University of Florida. Archived from the original on 28 June 2009. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- 1 2 3 "World Gazetteer: Malawi: largest cities and towns and statistics of their population". Archived from the original on 4 August 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- 1 2 3 4 Murphy, Alan; Armstrong, Kate; Firestone, Matthew D.; Fitzpatrick, Mary (2007). Lonely Planet Southern Africa: Join the Safari. Lonely Planet. p. 196. ISBN 1-74059-745-1. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- 1 2 3 4 "Kasungu". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ "Climate:Kasungu". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
- ↑ Baldauf, Richard B.; Kaplan, Robert (2004). Language Planning and Policy in Africa: Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique and South Africa. p. 21. ISBN 1-85359-725-2. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ Msiska, Karen (23 June 2008). "CEAR promises to compliment Shire-Zambezi Waterway". The Daily Times. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi: The Wider Angle". AllAfrica. 2 September 2002. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ Bosely, Sarah (18 February 2003). "Athenase Kiromera, doctor". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ Bosely, Sarah (16 February 2004). "One small miracle brings hope to thousands threatened by Aids". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ Riotta, Gianni (9 December 2004). "Tra gli orfani nel Paese dell'Aids". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ "Unicef: Wo die Spenden bleiben". Die Welt (in German). 13 June 2002. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ Kitabu, Gerald (24 December 2007). "Alternative source of income may help to protect forest". IPP Media. Archived from the original on 24 June 2008. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ "Traditional leader says 250,000 people in central Malawi landless". Asia Africa Intelligence Wire. 11 November 2004. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- 1 2 "Malawi police fire on Muslim demonstrators". Xinhua News Agency. 30 June 2003. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
- 1 2 "Lent is about giving something back for Canon Malcolm". Peterborough Evening Telegraph. 4 February 2008. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi: Story Workshop Fights Child Labour". AllAfrica. 11 December 2002. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi police arrest 12 persons for electoral violence". Panafrican News Agency. 23 November 2004. Retrieved 13 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi: MP Quizzes Govt Over Stadium Funds". AllAfrica. 27 April 2006. Retrieved 13 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi: MPs Defection Detrimental to Democracy – Kadzamira". AllAfrica. 25 January 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
- ↑ Kashoti, Dickson (18 June 2008). "Gondwe throws out 50% salary hike for teachers". The Daily Times. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ O'Leary, Sarah (16 February 2008). "Teachers fly out for charity". Ealing Times. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
- ↑ Tenthani, Raphael (14 May 2002). "Malawi's 'worst-ever' famine". BBC News. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi se enfrenta una crisis alimentaria que durará varios meses". El Mundo. 15 September 2005. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ "Report on cholera outbreak in Malawi". MIJ FM. 24 January 2005. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ Tenthani, Raphael (2 July 2003). "Malawi Muslim group condemns violence in protests of Al-Qaida arrests". Associated Press. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
- ↑ Herbert, Allan (20 January 2008). "UWI celebrating 60th anniversary". The Barbados Advocate. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2008.
- ↑ "Malawi's Bingu: Eliminating dissent Kamuzu style". The Nyasa Times. 10 June 2008. Retrieved 22 July 2008.