UNIMA Champions Women’s Leadership in Higher Education

As a way of empowering women to take on leadership roles in higher education, the University of Malawi organized a conference on 7th and 8th August, 2024, under the theme “Breaking Barriers, Building the Future: Women’s Leadership in Higher Education.” The event featured several notable women holding various positions in Malawi’s academic and non-academic sectors. These remarkable women included as Professor Address Malata, Vice Chancellor of Malawi University Science and Technology (MUST), and Mrs. Edith Jiya, Chief Executive Officer of Old Mutual Malawi, among others. The event was honored by the presence of the former President of the Republic of Malawi, Dr. Joyce Banda, who was also one of the guest speakers.

In her keynote address, Professor Address Malata urged women, particularly young women, to take on leadership roles in higher education. She emphasized the importance of increasing not only the number but also the quality of women in these positions. Malata highlighted the need to start building young leaders at earlier stages, such as in early childhood, primary, and secondary education, to ensure that, as they enter universities, the number of women in leadership roles will rise.

 “Most of the people attending this conference are those who are teaching, aspiring to be Deans, Heads of Departments, and perhaps even Vice-Chancellors. We need to start building that group of young women who can take on those positions,” Malata said.

Taking her turn to speak, Dr. Joyce Banda delivered a brilliant inspirational speech, drawing from her own experiences. She stated that her invitation to the conference was to share her story to inspire women as they encourage each other to move forward. “These women believe that as they empower each other to make progress, they need to hear other inspiring stories. Somehow, the women of Malawi believe that I have a story that can impact their lives,” Banda said.

She emphasized the importance of women supporting each other and being concerned about the challenges other women face, including encouraging girls to pursue education. She also urged women not to allow men to use them against one another.

During the conference, speakers presented on a range of topics, including professional and career development, mental health, networking and community engagement, personal branding, and developing leadership skills, among others. Various activities, such as a musical performance by the Folk Trio and a dance performance by the Ngwenyama dance group, were incorporated, adding an extra layer of vibrancy to the conference.