The Toll of Unexpected Job Loss: My Story as a Person who Is Blind In Malawi by Stuart Chauluka

I am a visually impaired young man, a husband, and the father of three children, two of whom attend boarding school. I hold a Master of Arts in Community Development and am also a member of the Malawi Union of the Blind, which advocates for the rights and needs of people with visual impairments in Malawi.

For the past year, I have been working on the USAID-funded Next Generation Early Grade Reading Activity (NextGen). In 2023, I joined this activity through an organization of persons with disabilities, the Malawi Union of the Blind. My key role within NextGen has been to provide technical assistance to ensure USAID’s NextGen activities are inclusive of learners and persons with disabilities. This involved building the capacity of teachers in inclusive education and ensuring the availability of accessible teaching and learning materials. 

However, in the blink of an eye, all this is gone.

My career and personal life 

It was a privilege to work on such a complex project, focused on promoting inclusivity of persons with disabilities in Malawi. 

Although Chemonics was the prime contractor, Inclusive Development Partners (IDP) implemented the inclusive elements within the project. I worked as a core member of the IDP team. The working environment was quite positive, and the project addressed most of my accommodation needs, including an assistant. Additionally, I received a fair salary and benefits package, and my income was enough for my family to meet our basic needs.  I received great feedback on my job performance and my contribution to the team.

Honestly, I didn’t expect to lose my job before 2027. On January 29, 2025, I received a message from NextGen’s senior management team containing the dreaded words, “Our contract has been terminated with immediate effect.”   

A future full of uncertainty

For the past few weeks, I have experienced the pain of losing a job, and it has been incredibly stressful. This situation could have been manageable if I had received prior notification instead of my job being turned off abruptly, like flipping a switch. Personally, I have been deeply affected in a number of ways: 

  • I have no savings to fall back on, and no severance package was offered from MUB as I seek new opportunities.  
  • My family’s health is at risk as I currently lack the funds to maintain health insurance. 
  • In Malawi, as in many third-world countries, the job market is already tough, even for people without disabilities. As a professional who is blind, my chances feel even more limited. Every month without work could affect my career momentum, making it even harder to regain stability.
  • Despite trying to keep optimistic, the fact remains that I didn’t expect to lose my job. I have been emotionally affected, and I feel disappointed in the United States Government.

In summary, the freeze on USAID funding has been devastating for me and my immediate and extended family.