Its more than court rooms...



Stella Mapemba(Lawyer)- Lived her dream

Their tune may be different but they sing one common song, "being lawyers" that's Stella Mapemba and Uchizi Chinula's shared commonality. Like many other girls in Malawi, Stella underwent the Malawi Government school system. From Dzenza Primary School to Lilongwe girls' Secondary School, through hard work, Stella kept pursuing her dreams of being the lawyer she imagined to be. Both Uchizi and Stella believed in education as a privilege to shape their future self. While Uchizi went straight into studying a Bachelor of law degree at the University of Hertfordshire in the UK, it was not the same with Stella who began her law career as a Bachelor of journalism student at the Polytechnique a constituent college of the University of Malawi. She studied for a year before being enrolled to study Bachelor of law at Chancellor College, another constituent college of the University of Malawi. She later pursued her Master of law at the University of Warwick in the UK.



Uchizi Chinula (Lawyer)-Believed in the power of Education

While being a lawyer is one of the most claimed and admired dream profession for most girls in Malawian primary and Secondary schools, not many girls believe they have what it takes to be one. To some, law is all about being in court and they limit themselves of not being good enough and under-possessing qualities that can enable them to argue a court case on behalf of a client hence they give up on their dreams. Stella and Uchizi serve as exemplary insights that lawyers do not spend all their time in court and that indeed, some do not even see the inside of one in their professional lives and lawyers are not only called in when things go wrong. Shedding more light that legal advice is needed, for almost everything a human being is entitled to do, from signing forms which include consent forms at hospitals, to property buying and many other transactions. As lawyers, Stella and Uchizi also recognise the challenge lawyers  value in defending the innocent and helping the most disadvantaged in society. For every Girl who wants to take pride in being a part of this amazing and life changing profession, education is the only way forward they hint.

Pursuing dreams has never been easy for both Stella and Uchizi, but one thing that they both held at the back of their mind is the realization that to become someone in life, you have to be educated. For Stella it all centres on imagination "I believe that imagination is the greatest gift God gave us, if we can imagine it, we can bring it into being. We need to imagine and dream BIG, We can’t afford to settle for small dreams when we have the potential to achieve bigger things." She urge Malawian young girls in primary and secondary school to start imaging of what they want to become as they pursue education for their dream fulfilment. Whilst Uchizi who wants  success for every Malawian girl child encourage girls to work hard in school. she says, " education is key to a bright future, no matter where you start from its a journey that requires hard work and it pays off."

Having worked as a lecturer at the Catholic University in Malawi, Uchizi Chinula is now working as a compliance and prevention officer at the Financial Intelligence Unit in Malawi whereas for Stella, she lived her dream of working with the Government under the Ministry of Justice for four years contributing in making justice accessible for all (The old, poor, women, men, children)before joining Malawi Leaf Company Limited, a subsidiary company of Auction Holdings Limited as a Legal Services and compliance Manager. keeping a good attitude while working hard on her dreams, Stella is passionate about service and impacting lives especially those that are less privileged and counted, those that the only crime they ever committed is being poor.
Besides her office work, Stella also finds a great deal of satisfaction through her pro bono (Volunteer) work with Centre for victimized Women and Children (CAVWOC). Where through this NGO, She has been able to represent women and children in various court cases and provided them with the much needed legal advice and representation which most of them could otherwise not have afforded on their own. She does sensitize women and children about their legal rights and is forever grateful to God for getting her to a position of service to others towards access to justice. She still believe in Education and that her academic career tree has not stopped growing, so is every girl's academic tree : "to those of you in secondary or primary school, nurture your academic goals and believe in a strong sprouting tree in whatever career you will opt for" she advised.

NB : This profile is shared for motivational purposes, feel free to use it to motivate young women and girls who you know are still not aware of their potential. If you are looking for mentorship or need more details please contact the blog owner (alibewawo@gmail.com)

#Girlsmustayinschoolsupporttheireducation#

Photo Credit : AMARU Photography in support of girls education

 Visit :  www.amaruphotos.com

There is a life changing power in your story...

Its such young girls whose dreams will be shaped by hearing and reading your story-Maggie with young girls in Nathenje

Never underestimate the power of your story, your experiences, your challenges, your opportunities and above all the blessing you are to those around you. I never knew just being me was enough to inspire others, telling someone  who I am was enough to make a difference untill not so long ago.It just took a narration of my life journey to be able to get somebody seeing the best of their being.It took sharing the opportunities of being admitted to 4 Universities and securing local and international scholarships to instill hope and self belief of what one is capable of becoming...so never underestimate ur experiences...There is a moving and motivating power in your story.
It has always been a part of me to never live life for myself; I have always wanted to live for others, as Christ did. I have always wanted to change things, the face of the minority, the disadvantaged, the less privileged in society, yes those who really don't get to be counted at times, those whom their voices are silenced from birth and those who really do not know or have a chance to get to know what is revolving around their world. A day comes and go, it makes no difference to their life as long as there is tomorrow, Life goes on. I was afraid to make a move in the first place, how could I face the world with empty hands cause I thought it takes something huge or perhaps that it needs one to have it all in order to make a difference, but ey, I was wrong it just takes you to bring about change. We all have the capacities within our abilities to make a difference in our own lives and others. Much as it is obvious to some people to see what opportunities are ahead of them, it is never obvious for everyone. Most of my friends had such obvious opportunities foreseen but It was never the case with me, I grew up knowing no opportunity ahead of me, but one thing I know and am grateful for is the secret to have known Christ at a tender age, it helped me to grow up worrying about nothing as I knew it was all set for tomorrow knowing He holds tomorrow.


 As I grew up, I have been blessed to come across a number of opportunities and I have always wanted to make others a part of these opportunities. I didn't know how but thank God, He gave me an opportunity to inspire and use my story to reach out and make a difference. It may not be the biggest or greatest story but to one person in some way at some point in time it has been able to make a difference. It all centers on education. If it was never for my hard work in school as am still doing now, I would never be able to inspire somebody, I would never be able to give a young girl a reason to be in school, I would never fly to different countries and I would never be blogging today on education and its power to change a life. I remember very well the first time when I was enrolled in a nursing college at the University of Malawi and wore a nurses uniform in my neighborhood, as I walked to the health center where I used to work on part time basis. I was still a teen ager and I met a young girl with her mama who lived just close to us. The little girl smiled at me and looked at me with envy; I knew she was amazed to see such a young nurse. It didn't mean anything to me what this young girl who by then was almost 8 yrs old had in her mind and what impact my age and career would have in her life until the time I had left nursing for a different career abroad. I rarely came home for holidays; I would come back once every year and never get to meet this young girl in my neighborhood.  Little did I know that she had told her mama that she looks up to me as her role model and that she one day wants to be like me. Her mother was just another good woman who knew how to stimulate her girl to work hard in school. She kept telling her of every other opportunity I was presented with and reminded her of the possibility to attain the same and even greater if she works hard in school. This year after almost 7 years of not meeting the girl, I learnt from her mother that she has been so ambitious to become more like me, she is been an excellent student maintaining her standards. That's when I also learnt to know that it’s not just this one girl in my neighborhood I have been inspiring and giving a reason to work hard in school but many other girls who constantly keep approaching me and share how my love for school has helped them stay in school.
Sharing my story, my challenges and my experiences has been a way of making a difference in the lives of many girls in my neighborhood and beyond. It has rekindled the girls’ interest to stay in school and strive for their dreams... If my story can make a difference in a girl’s life, what more with your story????


Maggie inspired Malawian girls with her story at one of the schools in Rural Lilongwe ,Her story  instilled hope in girls.

 NB: This has been written to call for Career/business oriented Malawian girls and women who believe in their Life stories and the difference it can make in promoting girls education in Malawi to share their stories through email to alibewawo@gmail.com and I will have the stories published on this blog...Be the first to share your story or recommend a friend’s story for this blogsite.  

#girlsmuststayinschoolsupporttheireducation#

It does not stop with your undiscovered self untill you unlock the doorway and education is the key...

Joana Chikadza, Award winning Nurse of the year 2014

It might not sound so real that you can get to build a career in a specific discipline and be able to enjoy and make the best out of it especially if it was not of interest to you. Some of you may be following the footsteps of Joana Chikadza. You may be travelling the path that Joana trode and perharps,you may end up trailing a new path for others to follow just as she did. You are in secondary school and university is where your heart is or may be you are still in primary school  and you keep telling yourself of a career you would love to pursue.You might have known somebody in that field who inspired you,well that sounds fantastic.As of now there is no other discipline running in your head except that specific field. At the back of your mind,its all well set and you are convinced to be well informed of the Lawyer, engineer, Doctor,or Administrator you are to be in years to come. You are not the first one to wear the shoes of such a dream, it was the same with Joana, from her secondary school days at Nkhamenya Girls secondary school, She already saw herself as an accountant. She never thought she could be a nurse,she never really heard alot about nursing, to her nursing was so feminine and not queit challenging a career,she viewed it to be a passive profession. Family, teachers and friends had already fuflfilled their role in influencing her to pursue accountng as part of their support.

Upon completing secondary education,Sitting for university entrance examination as a Malawi secondary school leaver was not a big deal for Joana.It was to her a doorway to being an accountant. As the results were announced , Joana ended up at Kamuzu college of Nursing, a constituent college of The University of Malawi to study nursing. It was untill then that she got to discover her career path and the best nurse she was being built into,it was time she got to know that dreams could not always turn up the way you see them,what matters the most in a career is the difference you make in your own life,society and beyond.She testified that education has the power to honor you and introduce you to places where you get to know of the true difference you can make at the end of everyday.Today 25 year old Joana Chikadza is one of  the most passionate nurses one would meet, She completed her university education and came out with a Bachelors degree in Nursing.She has embraced her skills and knowledge working for four years as a nurse.

Passion and determination led Joana to be the award winning Nurse of the year 2014. Remember, back then, nursing was never a field she saw herself in, today, education has shaped her to be a happy and inspiring nurse and she does say that, there is nothing to do with being female in order to amount to something in life and no career is feminine,each has its own way of challenging you as an individual not as a woman or man."I believe that God created no man or woman to be average,we all are entltled to excellency,Create that self image of a champion and know that you are a victor not a victim." says Joana as she pass out a message to girls to stay in school and get a chance to learn of different career opportunities." If you never end up being the teacher you see yourself in two or more years time,there is still room for you to make a difference in the Journalist you can become,it does not stop with your undiscovered self untill you unlock the doorway and education is the key.God never make mistakes trusts His plans."

NB : This profile is shared for motivational purposes,feel free to use it to motivate young women and girls who you know are still not aware of their potential. If you are looking for mentorship or need more details please contact the blog owner (alibewawo@gmail.com)

#Girlsmustayinschoolsupporttheireducation#

Photo Credit : AMARU Photography in support of girls education

 Visit :  www.amaruphotos.com