“We Are No Longer Silent”

HER-STORY TRADITIONAL AUTHORITY NGABU, CHIKWAWA

How Ndachiona Ndapasowa found her voice — and helped a community of women find theirs

Not long ago, Ndachiona Ndapasowa sat quietly through community meetings, watching decisions about her village's future being made without her. Today she chairs her Village Development Committee (VDC), stands before local councilors to demand clean water for her community, and is helping other women discover that leadership was never out of their reach — it was simply waiting to be claimed.

Her transformation is one thread in a much larger story unfolding across Traditional Authority Ngabu, where the Socio-Economic Empowerment of Women in Chikwawa Project — implemented by the Women's Legal Resources Centre (WOLREC) with support from the Tom Cunningham Trust through Trócaire — is helping women move from the margins of community life into its centre.

Finding the Confidence to Lead

“Before the project, many of us lacked the confidence to take up leadership positions or speak out on issues affecting our communities. The trainings on leadership, advocacy and gender equality helped us realize that, as women, we are just as capable of leading. We simply needed to believe in ourselves.”

That belief didn't arrive overnight. It was built training by training, conversation by conversation — through ongoing mentorship from project staff and community mentors who walked alongside women as they learned to understand their rights, engage local leaders, and take part in shaping the decisions that affect their own lives. Slowly, hesitation gave way to voice, and voice gave way to action.

Driving Change Beyond Leadership

For Ndachiona, the impact has reached far beyond her own growth. She has become a role model for other women in her community, encouraging them to believe in their abilities and step forward for leadership.

“Today, many women are expressing interest in contesting for different leadership positions. Seeing them step forward gives me hope, because it shows that our communities are beginning to recognize women's leadership.”

The advocacy skills Ndachiona gained through the project have also enabled her and other women to champion pressing community development issues — chief among them, access to clean and safe water.

Many communities in Chikwawa depend on a handful of boreholes; some have none at all. Where groundwater does exist, it is often too salty for domestic use, forcing women and girls to walk long distances in search of water fit to drink and cook with — a burden that falls, disproportionately, on women. Rather than accept the situation, Ndachiona and her fellow leaders organized through the Women's Manifesto Movement and took their case directly to local duty bearers, including councilors.

“We spoke about the challenges our communities face and asked for clean water. They have promised that boreholes and solar-powered piped water systems will soon be installed. This happened because we found the confidence to speak up and demand services that our communities deserve.”

A New Chapter for Women in Chikwawa

For Ndachiona, the greatest achievement isn't the promised infrastructure — as transformative as that will be - but the shift she has witnessed in the women around her.

“Women are no longer silent. We know our rights, we participate in decision-making, and we are influencing the future of our communities.”

Ndachiona's story is one of many being documented across Chikwawa, where women are stepping into leadership, one meeting, one manifesto, one voice at a time.