Ulanda Mtamba

Last updated
Ulanda Mtamba
Nationality Malawi
Occupation(s)Rotary President and campaigner for improving the education of women
EmployerAGE Africa
Known forone of the BBC's 100 women in 2023

Ulanda Mtamba is a Malawian campaigner for education who is against child marriage. She became a President of Rotary International in Limbe and named on the BBC's 100 Women list as one of the world's inspiring and influential women in 2023. [1] She is the country director of Advancing Girls Education in Africa (AGE Africa). 10% of girls in Malawi are married by the age of fifteen.

Life

Mtamba's hometown is Lilongwe in Malawi. In her community, girls frequently leave education for marriage. [2] She is a campaigner for education, and she is against child marriage.

Mtamba has worked to improve the lives of people living with AIDS since 2003. In 2018 she was a fellow of the New York-based AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition. [3] In 2019 she joined Rotary International. [4]

She is the country director of Advancing Girls Education in Africa (AGE Africa). [3] AGE Africa is an American non-profit started in 2005 by Xanthe Scharff to fund African girls' education. [5]

Mtamba became the President of Limbe's Rotary International club in 2023. [4] She is the first woman to serve in that role in Limbe. [6] Her club announced the completion of three years work to manage the watershed in the Machinga District. Her club had led the work and it will improve the lives of 2,500 people. [7]

She became one of the thirteen African women named as part of the BBC's 100 Women in 2023. [8] Three other of the BBC 100 women visited her area as they are also concerned about the education of girls in Malawi. Michelle Obama, Melinda French Gates, and Amal Clooney visited a secondary school in Malawi in November 2023. [9] Obama said that she had heard of the work done in supporting girls education and that her foundation funded AGE Africa since 2018. Accounts of the visit included quotes from all four of the BBC 100 women. Mtamba as the country director for AGE Africa noted that the visit of the other three showed the importance of their work. [9] Ulanda is among the 100 Inspiring Women 2024 Season II by the Wealth Woman Magazine in Malawi. She speaks out about child marriage noting that most girls are married before they are eighteen and ten per cent of girls marry before the age of fifteen. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malawi</span> Country in Southeastern Africa

Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi and formerly known as Nyasaland, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over 118,484 km2 (45,747 sq mi) and has an estimated population of 19,431,566. Malawi's capital and largest city is Lilongwe. Its second-largest is Blantyre, its third-largest is Mzuzu, and its fourth-largest is Zomba, the former capital.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hastings Banda</span> First president of Malawi

Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the leader of Malawi from 1964 to 1994. He served as Prime Minister from independence in 1964 to 1966, when Malawi was a Dominion/Commonwealth realm. In 1966, the country became a republic and he became the first president as a result, ruling until his defeat in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graça Machel</span> Mozambican humanitarian activist and politician

Graça Machel is a Mozambican politician and humanitarian. Machel is an international advocate for women's and children's rights and was made an honorary Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997 for her humanitarian work. She is the only woman in modern history to have served as First Lady of two countries: South Africa and Mozambique. She is the widow of former President of Mozambique Samora Machel (1975–1986) and former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela (1998–2013).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle Obama</span> First Lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017

Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joyce Banda</span> President of Malawi from 2012 to 2014

Joyce Hilda Banda is a Malawian politician, who served as President of Malawi, from 7 April 2012 to 31 May 2014. Banda took office as President following the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika. She is the founder and leader of the People's Party, created in 2011. An educator and grassroots women's rights activist, she was the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and the Vice-President of Malawi from May 2009 to April 2012. She has served in various roles as a member of Parliament and as Minister of Gender and Child Welfare before she became the President of the Republic of Malawi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Islam in Malawi</span>

Islam is the second largest religion in Malawi behind Christianity. Nearly all of Malawi's Muslims adhere to Sunni Islam. Though difficult to assess, according to the CIA Factbook, in 2018 about 13.8% of the country's population was Muslim. Muslim organisations in the country claim a figure of 15-20%. According to the latest census (2018), Muslims make up 13.8% (2,426,754) of the country's population. According to the Malawi Religion Project run by the University of Pennsylvania, in 2010 approximately 19.6% of the population was Muslim, concentrated mostly in the Southern Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raising Malawi</span> Charity providing aid for orphans in Malawi

Raising Malawi is a charity non-profit organization that was founded by Madonna and Michael Berg in 2006. It is dedicated to helping with the extreme poverty and hardship endured by Malawi's one million orphans, primarily through health and education programming. Initially, the "Raising Malawi Academy for Girls" was to be constructed but following an audit by the Global Philanthropy Group, which questioned expenditure on salaries and benefits as well as the management capacity and culture, the charity's school headmistress resigned in October 2010 and the project was scrapped.

AVAC is a New York City-based international non-profit community- and consumer-based organization working to accelerate ethical development and delivery of AIDS vaccines and other HIV prevention options to populations throughout the world. Founded in 1995, AVAC uses public education, policy analysis, advocacy and Community Mobilization to accelerate a comprehensive response to the epidemic.

The St. Andrew's International School in Blantyre, Malawi was founded there in 1938 under British rule by the (Presbyterian) Church of Scotland Mission. The high school in its present form was established in 1958. SAIntS is a British International School offering (i) GCSE, A Level and BTEC qualifications and a wealth of extra-curricular opportunities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human rights in Malawi</span>

The history of human rights in Malawi during recent decades is complicated, and the situation at present is in a state of dramatic, and positive, transition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cecilia Kadzamira</span>

Cecilia Tamanda Kadzamira, GCVO was the official hostess of Malawi during the reign of president Hastings Banda. Whilst she and Banda were not officially married, she served as the first lady or official hostess for several years. For several years, she was the most powerful woman in Malawi. Kadzamira is referred to as "Mama" or "Mother of the Nation".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nancy Tembo</span> Malawian politician

Nancy Gladys Tembo is a Malawian politician and serves as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Malawi Government since 2022. She is also a Member of Parliament (MP) representing Lilongwe City South West constituency in the National Assembly of the Republic of Malawi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lily Alfonso</span> Malawian fashion designer

Lilly Alfonso is a Malawian fashion designer. Fashion was one of her interests as a child, leading her to eventually become the CEO and founder of a fashion and design label named after herself. Her designs have been modelled in fashion shows in places such as London and Kuala Lumpur. Her label produces ready-to-wear clothing for both women and men under sub-labels LAwomann, LAmann

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zuriel Oduwole</span> American education activist

Zuriel Elise Oduwole is an American education advocate and film maker best known for her works on the advocacy for the education of girls in Africa. Her advocacy has since made her in the summer of 2013 at the age of 10, the youngest person to be profiled by Forbes. In November 2014, at age 12, Zuriel became the world's youngest filmmaker to have a self-produced and self-edited work screened, after her film showed in two movie chains, and then went on to show in Ghana, England, South Africa, and Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theresa Kachindamoto</span> Malawian politician

Theresa Kachindamoto is a Malawian paramount chief of the Dedza District in the central region of Malawi. She has informal authority over more than 900,000 people. She is known for her forceful action in dissolving child marriages and insisting on education for both girls and boys.

Tabitha Chaŵinga is a Malawian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Première Ligue club Lyon and the Malawi national team.

Yolanda Kaunda is Malawi's first female aircraft captain and its second female pilot.

Virginia Khunguni is a women's rights activist from Malawi. She is the founder and director of Girls Arise for Change, an organization that aims to empower women in order to foster social and cultural change. The organization led initiatives in combatting child labor, child marriage and sexual exploitation. Khunguni is a recipient of Queen's Young Leader Award for her work in Africa.

Esther Jolobala is a Malawian politician who has served in the Parliament of Malawi since 2014, representing the Machinga East constituency as a member of the United Democratic Front.

Nana Wanjau is a Kenyan philanthropist known for her work as president of the Rotary Club of Nairobi East and for her founding of the non-profit Power Woman International that works to help widows in Kenya.

References

  1. ↑ "BBC 100 Women 2023: Who is on the list this year? - BBC News". BBC .
  2. ↑ "BBC 100 Women 2023: Who is on the list this year?". BBC News. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  3. 1 2 "Ulanda Mtamba". avac.org. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  4. 1 2 Adejumo, Quadri (2023-07-17). "Rotary Club of Limbe Welcomes First Female President, Ulanda Mtamba". BNN Breaking. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  5. ↑ "How a writer learned to help Malawi's girls help themselves". Christian Science Monitor. ISSN   0882-7729 . Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  6. ↑ "Limbe Rotary Club elects first female president". The Nation Online. 2023-07-17. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  7. ↑ "Rotary Club of Limbe project transforms Machinga". The Nation Online. 2023-09-21. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  8. ↑ Agbetiloye, Adekunle (2023-11-24). "Meet the 13 African women named among BBC 100 women in 2023". Business Insider Africa. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  9. 1 2 Chitete, Suzgo (2023-11-16). "Michelle Obama, others inspire Malawian girls". The Nation Online. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  10. ↑ "Perspective - Campaigning against child marriage in Malawi: An uphill battle". France 24. 2023-12-19. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.