Maureen Kondowe

Maureen Kondowe
Born	April 1, 1973
Nationality	Malawian
Education	University of Malawi & the University of Essex
Occupation	High Court judge
Spouse	Shyley Sinya Kondowe
Children	Nthangwanika Kondowe

Maureen Kondowe (born April 1, 1973) became a Malawian high court judge in 2020.

Life

Kondowe was born in 1973. She graduated in law at the University of Malawi in 1996. She studied International Trade Law and she obtained a master's degree from the University of Essex in 2000. ^[1]

She married a Shyley Sinya Kondowe who was a business person. In 1999 they had a daughter named Nthangwanika Kondowe and she would become associated with Hip Hop music. ^[2]

She was a member of the Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU) and in 2014 she became one of its vice-presidents. Elijah Chola was the President and they served until 2017. ^[3]

In 2016 the United Nations Environment Programme was featuring her work in support of the Paris Agreement. She was arguing that the agreement was a key part of the support that Africa might expect to mitigate climate change and it was important that the agreement was upheld. ^[4]

In 2020, President Chakwera came to power thanks to judges who over turned a previous national election. Several judges were promoted and Kondowe was one of six women who were promoted to be high court judges at the Kamuzu Palace. ^[5] The appointment was lauded by feminists like Emma Kaliya and Maggie Kathewara Banda ^[6] because half of the appointees were women.The others were Agnes Patemba, Anneline Kanthambi; Violet Chipao, Vikochi Chima and Charlotte Wezi Malonda. ^[7]

Kondowe wrote "An Analysis of the Electoral Legal Environment for the 2013 Zimbabwean Harmonized Elections" in 2013 and she contributed to "In Search of Justice: Women and the Administration of Law in Malawi" which was published in 2000. ^{[3] [8]}

References

1. Malawi Judiciary Annual Report 2021 (PDF). Malawi Judiciary. 2021. p. 53.
2. Online, Nation (2022-08-07). "Nthangwanika kondowe: malawi hip hop awards project manager". Nation Online. Retrieved 2025-08-31.
3. "Executive Committee | The Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU)" . Retrieved 2025-08-31.
4. UN Environment Programme (2016-10-11). Ms. Maureen Kondowe . Retrieved 2025-08-31– via YouTube.
5. "Chakwera tells Judiciary to resists corruption and help fix Malawi: New judges sworn-in". 2020-10-29. Retrieved 2025-08-31.
6. Mlanjira, Duncan (2020-10-27). "Seasoned activist Kaliya applauds Chakwera for implementing gender equality in appointment of judges" . Retrieved 2025-08-31.
7. "Chakwera Gets Gender Activists Salute Over Appointments - 'Inspires Confidence to Malawi Women'". Nyasa Times. 28 Oct 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
8. In Search of Justice: Women and the Administration of Justice in Malawi. Dzuka Publishing Company. 2000. ISBN   978-99908-17-69-0.