Working from home in Malawi

When the pandemic hit Malawi we decided the set our team up at home. With no wifi, limited power and family coming and going it was a little harder but like everything we do we thought creatively and tried to make it work as best we could.

Here Inno and Farida, our staff in Malawi, talk about their experience of working at home and how they can’t wait to get back into the office.

Since March 2020. Malawi closed its borders to the outside world, and so we closed our office doors to avoid the daily commute to work. We were not overly concerned about contracting Covid-19 in the office but it is during our commute by minibus that the danger lies, it is very hard to social distance and many people are not wearing masks making transmission very likely. We felt safer at home.

Inno’s reflections of working from home…

RSC gave us access to wifi home hubs and we moved as much of what we needed into our homes. With schools closed too myself and my family were all home. I have two children so for them it was very different having Dad working from home too.

Working from home was new, and understandably thrilling for the first month. Then reality kicked in; the dining table that is 10 meters away from a TV showing cartoon network, with two young ones in the room; not the ideal place for a zoom meeting, or indeed for one that needs to focus. Kicking the kids out of the room seemed harsh too, so I started to work from the veranda using my old sewing machine as a makeshift desk. This is when I understood how much the Travel Barn contributed to all the work successes. 

I missed having a quiet place to work and to talk directly to my work colleagues and the routine of keeping normal working hours too.

With Malawi now rolling out its vaccination drive, I cannot wait to return to the Travel Barn full time, with my team working on our expeditions again.

It is the obvious things we never learn to appreciate. The very surroundings of our daily work became so obvious that we never understood it’s true value.

And Farida…

Wow, twelve months plus of working from home. What a challenge it has been. 

Not completely bad though, I must say. It has definitely been unexpected, a rollercoaster, but has also provided a window/period of reflection for myself personally. 

The first few months of working from home, were a little bit busy, as business was only beginning to wind down. Lots of files being updated and closed, we ventured into a little bit of consultancy work as well as project M&E. 

March to December 2020 was not easy, but as a team, we conquered it and that’s only because we had one another. Dom & Kate have been working extremely hard in the UK to manage Orbis Expeditions as well as provide opportunities for RSC to make profit during the global lockdown, whilst Inno & myself have been holding the fort down in Malawi and keeping clients up-to-date with the situation on the ground. 

Through this experience, my biggest challenges have been juggling home life and working. Whilst your family sees you at home and takes it as an opportunity to interact more, require your assistance around the house, you are also trying to be present and make sure your work deliverables are up to standard. I think it’s still a little bit difficult for my parents to wrap their head around the idea that I’m “at home” but not really. It has been stressful trying to balance that as well as having an environment that isn’t so work friendly. The distractions were many, however, I am glad to have found a balance now. 

This year, our main project, which has been student sponsorship, is running smoothly. Of course, like with all projects, there is always going to be room for improvement, however, the teams at CISER and RSC have worked extremely well to ensure that things are in order for the new academic year and that students are being supported in the best way possible. 

Mentorship sessions have been scheduled in by the Malawian women that take part in our Women’s skills workshops, to provide students at Rainbow Hope relatable guidance and support in their academic and social lives. For the students that wrote their MSCE (Malawi secondary certificate of education) examinations last year, the results are now out and we are waiting to hear how the students performed last year under the pressuring circumstances. 

We are hopeful for the rest of the year and what it has to offer the travel world! 75% of our team has been vaccinated and we remain watchful over travel guidelines for the future.

#staysafe