Empowering her people through music and education, Maggie Mkandawire fights the Covid-19 pandemic in her own unique way.
When her music academy in the city of Lilongwe closed in March 2020, students were ordered home and Mkandawire grabbed a few clothes, her bass guitar and jumped on a bus for the 12-hour journey to her home in Karonga in northern Malawi.
Mkandawire and her friends established a project called Pamoza Na Chifama, with the aim of protecting people from Covid-19. They pooled their resources and bought four metres of chitenge, a cotton fabric worn locally, and made 36 face masks to donate to vulnerable people. “As we started teaching local tailors and also donating some masks in schools, in the community and in churches, we thought it would be better that we broadcast this information to a larger scale,” says Mkandawire.
A dearth of vaccine supplies has hindered the roll-out in Karonga, says Elias Phiri, a senior health officer at Karonga District Hospital, but the broadcasts on the region’s most popular radio stations have gone a long way to combatting vaccine hesitancy. A singer-songwriter using the stage name Kaadrum, she plays bass guitar and combines traditional Malawian music with Afro jazz and pop.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
South Africa Navy’s strike craft lands in Mozambique - The Mail & GuardianWe reveal details of the South African National Defence Force’s contribution to the Southern African Development Community’s military mission to rid Mozambique of insurgents
Read more »
Magashule claims his suspension of Ramaphosa was lawful - The Mail & GuardianIn his application for leave to appeal the high court judgment, Magashule argues that the court erred in holding that Ramaphosa’s suspension was not lawful without giving any explanation for that conclusion
Read more »
Wayde van Niekerk misses 400m final to compound SA pain - The Mail & GuardianThe world record holder was a medal hope but has ultimately been outrun by injury
Read more »
Rivals agree on new measures to end Cape Town taxi dispute - The Mail & GuardianBut key route remains closed and affected areas halt issuing of operating licences
Read more »
The role of culture in mitigating employee burnout - The Mail & GuardianAt the heart of a strong business culture is an underlying sense of belonging and a common desire to serve people
Read more »
Tissue engineering facility breathes new life into local biomedical sector - The Mail & GuardianThis is the first facility of its kind in the Western Cape and only the third such facility in South Africa
Read more »