Kalumpha urges Malawi’s youth to take active role in nation-building
UK-based business strategist, youth empowerment campaigner and philanthropist Rhodrick Junaid Kalumpha has urged young Malawians to take an active role in nation-building rather than leaving the country’s future in the hands of others.
Speaking virtually from London to a group of young Malawians he mentors, along with community organisers and traditional leaders, Kalumpha framed civic participation as both a duty and a safeguard to ensure public resources serve the wider population.
“If you stand on the sidelines, you hand the keys to the state to those who will not be accountable,” he said.
He warned that the current generation of older politicians would not remain in power indefinitely, and that the consequences of inaction would fall on young people themselves.
Kalumpha urged youth to move beyond passive observation and get involved in economic and social development, from cooperatives and small enterprises to school boards and community health initiatives.
He said civic engagement extended beyond voting to include entrepreneurship, volunteerism, community organising and holding leaders accountable.
Education and wellness
Kalumpha said education and wellbeing were “non-negotiable,” encouraging young people to pursue both formal schooling and practical skills, while prioritising their physical and mental health.
“A healthy mind and body are the tools of change. You cannot lead a community if you are not well enough to show up,” he said.
He called for greater investment in youth mental health services, sports facilities and community centres, and appealed to traditional leaders to support young people’s wellbeing.
“We need our young people to be active, to keep themselves healthy. They are the backbone of the country, as they are the ones that will take the country to a better place,” he said.
Fight against early marriage
Kalumpha placed particular emphasis on girls’ education, saying: “Educating women is educating a generation.”
He highlighted lake districts where the fishing economy has left children, particularly girls, vulnerable to child labour and early marriage, and announced plans to engage traditional leaders in Karonga, Nkhata Bay, Chiweta in Rumphi, Nkhotakota, Salima and Mangochi.
He said chiefs, elders and community influencers needed to be partners in protecting children, promoting schooling and creating alternatives to exploitative labour.
Kalumpha outlined a series of planned interventions, including youth-led community dialogues with traditional leaders to map local challenges, skills hubs combining vocational training with civic education, girls’ scholarships and mentorship programmes, wellness programmes integrating sport, counselling and leadership training, and local accountability networks to monitor public spending and service delivery.
He encouraged young people to start with small initiatives, such as neighbourhood clean-ups, savings groups or petitions for better services, and to build momentum from there.
“Change is a thousand small acts,” he said.
Reaction
Traditional Authority Mphonde, a senior chief in Nkhotakota district, said he would support Kalumpha’s initiatives, describing them as important for the community and the country.
Community organiser Dalileni Dambuleni welcomed the initiative, saying Malawi lacked a foundation for breeding good leaders among the young.
Martha Goliati, 19, from Salima, a beneficiary of the mentorship programme, said young people wanted to be part of decisions affecting their future, while Mangochi entrepreneur Mustafa Ali said training and mentorship could help turn small business ideas into ventures that create employment.
Lyton Mhone, an NGO coordinator in Nkhata Bay, said traditional leaders played a critical role as “gatekeepers” in communities, while Dorothy Gondwe, a headteacher in Chiweta, Rumphi, said scholarships and safe transport were needed to ensure girls could safely access education.
Youth empowerment has been a growing focus for government agencies, NGOs and community groups in Malawi over the past two decades, with young people continuing to face high unemployment, limited access to education and health services, and social pressures including early marriage and exploitative labour, particularly in rural and lakeshore communities.
