A primary school teacher at Mbambawa Primary School in Kasungu District, Abel Simbani has built his career around helping children learn. As a person with visual impairment teaching at a mainstream school, he understands both the promise of education and the barriers that can prevent people with disabilities from fully participating.For years, Simbani relied on manually produced Braille and a typewriter to prepare teaching materials and carry out his professional responsibilities. These tools remain valuable, but producing, storing and sharing information can be slow, costly and demanding.I used to hear about computers and how computerised Braille books were improving efficiency in learning,” he recalls. “Braille written manually is a very slow process. I was told that the computer is fast and makes printing documents very fastAbel SimbaniWhat began as curiosity soon became determination.Refusing to let limited access define himSimbani previously worked at a school where he could use a computer. When he moved to Mbambawa Primary School, where computers are not currently available, that opportunity disappeared.But Simbani refused to allow the absence of equipment to end his journey.He began using an internet café to continue practicing; learning whenever and wherever he could. Each visit became an act of courage: a quiet refusal to be excluded from a world increasingly shaped by technology.“I believe that, with continuous practice, I will be able to sharpen my skills,” he says.For Simbani, digital skills are not simply a professional advantage. They offer greater independence, faster access to information and new ways of preparing and sharing learning materials. They also create possibilities for people with visual impairments to participate more fully in education, employment and society.“Braille is expensive and slow, but the computer makes life easier for everyone—visually impaired and sighted,” he explains. “Digital skills bring people together and enhance learning.” In a country with more than 700,000 people with visual impairments, according to the Ministry of Gender, Simbani’s experience reflects a much wider challenge. Without accessible technologies, assistive devices and inclusive training, too many talented people remain separated from opportunities they are ready to pursue.Simbani is showing that the barrier is not disability. The barrier is exclusion.From learner to Master TrainerSimbani’s journey did not end when he learned how to use a computer. It grew into a bigger purpose: helping others discover the same possibilities.Today, he is a Master Trainer under the Introduction to Computer Basics for the Visually Impaired (ICBVI) training programme. He is no longer only acquiring digital skills, he is preparing to pass them on.“People with visual impairments need digital skills,” Simbani says. “Once exposed to the digital world, there are so many opportunities awaiting them across the globe.”The programme’s first cohort produced seven trainers, including four Master Trainers. These trainers can now support subsequent cohorts, extend learning to more communities and reduce dependence on external facilitators.For Simbani, becoming a Master Trainer means transforming a personal breakthrough into a pathway for others.A skill learned by one teacher can reach another person with visual impairment. That person can support a colleague, a learner, a family or an entire community. In this way, digital inclusion moves beyond a single training room and becomes a growing movement of knowledge, confidence and independence. A new cohort and a growing movementThat movement is expanding through ICBVI Cohort 2, which is creating new opportunities for people with visual impairments to gain practical computer skills while strengthening the network of trainers who can support others.Speaking during the training, Milca Manyozo, Director of Information in the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, delivered a clear message:“A digitally transformed Malawi is an accessible Malawi.”She encouraged participants to take ownership of their new skills; not only to improve their own lives, but also to lift others.Simbanl’s journey gives life to that message. He began with limited access to technology, carried on through persistence and practice, and is now becoming a source of knowledge and encouragement for others.Ezekiel Kumwenda, Executive Director of the Malawi Union of the Blind, placed this effort within Malawi’s broader development ambitions:“We cannot achieve MW2063 if people with visual impairments are excluded.”His words underline an essential truth: digital inclusion is not simply about inviting people with disabilities into spaces designed without them. It is about removing the barriers that deny them access to information, education, employment and the opportunity to shape their own futures.The ICBVI training programme is being implemented by UNDP Malawi through the Inclusive Digital Transformation for Malawi (IDT4M) Project, in collaboration with the Information and Communication Technologies Association of Malawi (ICTAM), with support from the European Union, Irish Aid and the Government of Norway.More than learning to use a computerSimbani’s story is not simply about a teacher learning digital skills.It is the story of a man who refused to let limited access determine the limits of his ambition. It is about courage expressed through continuous learning, determination sustained in the face of barriers, and leadership grounded in the desire to help others succeed.From manually producing Braille materials to becoming a Master Trainer, Simbani is opening digital doors; not only for himself, but for many others who will learn through him.His journey reminds us that people with visual impairments do not lack talent, ambition or potential. What is too often missing is equitable access to the tools and opportunities that allow those qualities to flourish.Give people accessible technology, practical skills and the confidence to lead, and they will do more than overcome barriers.They will help remove those barriers for everyone who follows.That is how digital inclusion becomes dignity.
That is how opportunity becomes independence.
And that is how Malawi’s digital transformation can truly leave no one behind.

For one day, schoolgirls shadowed United Nations professionals, asking questions and seeing, up close, the careers and possibilities that could shape their own futures. At 17, Vanessa Chilipakasu thought she understood communications. There were cameras, photographs, videos and content. Then she spent a morning inside the Communications Unit at UNDP Malawi. “I learnt that communication is not always about media. It is not always about photos, videos and content. It is also about how we communicate and share things that people do not know,” said Vanessa, a student at Mkhwichi Secondary School. The experience also changed the way she understood UNDP itself.“I have been really inspired and motivated today because the experience opened up something I did not know about UNDP."Vanessa Chilipakhasu, 17, Mkhwichi Secondary School. “I have been really inspired and motivated today because the experience opened up something I did not know about UNDP,” she said.By the end of the morning, an institution that had once seemed distant had become a place she could imagine herself working in.“I am actually planning to be there in a couple of years to come.”That shift, from looking at an institution from the outside to beginning to imagine oneself inside it, was at the heart of Girls Takeover Day, held in Lilongwe on 13 August 2026.Girls from Chipasula Secondary School, Stepping Stones School, and Mkhwichi Primary and Secondary School spent the day in professional and leadership spaces across the United Nations in Malawi, shadowing staff from UNDP, UN Women, UNICEF and UNFPA, before gathering at the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator for an afternoon of reflection and engagement with senior UN leaders.Under the UNDP Gender Seal Nex-Gen Women Campaign, the Programme was designed for girls to challenge structural and normative barriers to leadership in several areas of expertise. Following an inspirational welcome session with the Resident Representatives, the girls were allocated to different offices for job shadowing and leadership exposure. In the afternoon, they reflected on what they had learnt about the United Nations, which careers had inspired them, whether the experience had influenced their ambitions, and what they would take back to their schools and communities.For girls whose ambitions are still taking shape, the idea was simple: sometimes possibility becomes clearer when you can see it up close.From aspiration to exposureThe inaugural Girls Takeover Day forms part of the NextGen Women: Learning, Leading, Transforming Our Future inter-generational leadership campaign, a joint initiative of the United Nations Gender Theme Group in Malawi.Convened by UNDP in collaboration with UN Women, UNICEF and UNFPA, with support from the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office, the campaign seeks to inspire and empower adolescent girls through mentorship, professional exposure and direct engagement with leaders. Its objectives include building confidence and aspirations, increasing awareness of leadership and career opportunities, and connecting girls with women leaders and supportive male champions.The initiative responds to barriers that continue to limit opportunities for many girls, including school dropout, child marriage, teenage pregnancy, limited mentorship and inadequate career guidance. These challenges contribute to the underrepresentation of women in leadership across public institutions, politics, the private sector and the United Nations system.Rather than simply telling girls that leadership is possible, the programme places them inside the spaces where careers are built, decisions are made, and professional relationships take shape. For Sarah Misoya, a Form Four student from Chipasula Secondary School, that meant spending part of the morning with UNDP Malawi.“I learnt that, as girls, we can do what men can do,” Sarah said. “I also learnt that we should trust in our talents.”Sarah wants to become a civil engineer and build infrastructure for Malawi. Telling people's stories through a a journalism career is another possibility.“Right now, I want to be an engineer. If that does not work out, I want to be a journalist.”Her answer captured something the programme was designed to encourage not certainty about a single future, but confidence that there can be more than one path towards it. What changes when girls enter the room?At the centre of the Girls Takeover concept is a straightforward theory: when girls are exposed to leaders, professional environments and inter-generational mentorship, they are more likely to develop stronger confidence, leadership aspirations and motivation to pursue education and career opportunities.For Rejoice Chitsulo, 15, from Chipasula Secondary School, that exposure happened at UNFPA.“They really inspired me,” she said. “They told me that although we come from different places or countries, we can still make a change and contribute to development.”One message stayed with her.“No matter how hard it is, I must keep going. The sky is not the limit. I must aim higher and higher.”Seeing women working within the United Nations also strengthened her sense of what women can contribute despite the obstacles they may face.“It inspired me to see that women can make a difference despite the challenges they experience in their communities,” she said. “It inspired me to also make a change for other women where I come from.”That movement, from personal ambition to a sense of responsibility towards others, is part of what the initiative hopes to nurture: girls who see themselves not only as future professionals, but as people capable of influencing their schools, communities and country.“I can do this. I can lead.”Welcoming girls to UNDP Malawi, UNDP Resident Representative Fenella Frost spoke about the barriers that still prevent many girls from realising their potential.“Some girls have to get married at a very young age, and some have children very young. That means they do not have the opportunity to achieve all their dreams,” she said.But her message also challenged the girls to think beyond their own success.“I hope that when you go back to your schools, homes, churches or mosques, you can become champions for girls—not just for yourselves, but also for the other girls around you.”Before they moved into the offices where they would spend the morning, Frost left them with four statements:“I can do this. I can lead. I can make a difference. The future is full of possibilities.” For Christobel Ngwira, an 11-year-old Standard Eight learner at Stepping Stones School, the visit drew her attention to education and the opportunities available to other girls.“I was very inspired by the young women helping girls to access quality education,” she said.“I learnt that there are many children in Malawi who need quality education, and that these organisations are helping them access it and empowering young women and girls to pursue their dreams.” At 11, imagining the CEO’s officeSome ambitions were already strikingly clear. Mzati Muheziwa, an 11-year-old learner from Mkhwichi Primary School, visited UNICEF.“In future, I want to be an entrepreneur. I want to become a CEO,” she said.She also spoke about the possibility of one day working for UNICEF.“I hope that in the future I can work at UNICEF so that I can also help people in need.”Mzati said she planned to tell her family about what she had seen. It was a small detail, but an important one. The Girls Takeover concept envisages learning extending beyond the participants themselves, with girls taking lessons back to their peers, schools and communities. Future phases of the campaign are expected to include mentorship circles, national leadership dialogues, storytelling, youth innovation initiatives, career coaching and digital engagement platforms for girls.“Today is much more than a visit. It is an opportunity for you to see what is possible."UN Resident Coordinator Rebecca Adda-Dontoh Leadership made visibleBy afternoon, the girls had moved from individual UN agencies to the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator.There, the programme shifted from observation to reflection.What had surprised them? Which professional roles had caught their attention? Had their understanding of the United Nations changed? What would they take back to their schools? And how could girls themselves contribute to solving problems in their communities? United Nations Resident Coordinator Rebecca Adda-Dontoh invited them to think of the day as more than a tour of UN offices.“Today is much more than a visit. It is an opportunity for you to see what is possible,” she said. “It is about opening doors, broadening your horizons and helping you believe that leadership is not for a selected few; it is for every girl who is willing to dream, work hard and never give up.”She reminded the girls that the women they had met had also travelled difficult roads, facing obstacles, setbacks and disappointment, but continuing with their education and ambitions.Then she connected those individual journeys to Malawi’s wider development.“Malawi needs your ideas, your talents, your innovative ideas and your voice.”The Girls Takeover initiative contributes to wider United Nations efforts to advance gender equality and girls’ leadership, including Sustainable Development Goal 5 on Gender Equality, and is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024–2028, Malawi 2063 and national gender priorities.Those frameworks speak the language of policy and development. On this particular Thursday in Lilongwe, however, they became personal.They looked like an 11-year-old imagining herself as a CEO. A Form Four student discovering that communications could be part of her future. A 15-year-old deciding that the sky should not be her limit. A 17-year-old walking into a United Nations office she once barely understood and leaving able to imagine herself working there.At the end of the day, Adda-Dontoh left the girls with a final message:“I hope you leave believing that your dreams are valid, that your voice matters and that your future is bright.”For an initiative built around opening doors, perhaps that is where the significance lies: not in deciding what each girl will eventually become, but in making sure she has seen enough of what is possible to know that she can become something.Leadership made visibleBy afternoon, the girls had moved from individual UN agencies to the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator.There, the programme shifted from observation to reflection.What had surprised them? Which professional roles had caught their attention? Had their understanding of the United Nations changed? What would they take back to their schools? And how could girls themselves contribute to solving problems in their communities? United Nations Resident Coordinator Rebecca Adda-Dontoh invited them to think of the day as more than a tour of UN offices.“Today is much more than a visit. It is an opportunity for you to see what is possible,” she said. “It is about opening doors, broadening your horizons and helping you believe that leadership is not for a selected few; it is for every girl who is willing to dream, work hard and never give up.”She reminded the girls that the women they had met had also travelled difficult roads, facing obstacles, setbacks and disappointment, but continuing with their education and ambitions.Then she connected those individual journeys to Malawi’s wider development.“Malawi needs your ideas, your talents, your innovative ideas and your voice.”The Girls Takeover initiative contributes to wider United Nations efforts to advance gender equality and girls’ leadership, including Sustainable Development Goal 5 on Gender Equality, and is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024–2028, Malawi 2063 and national gender priorities.Those frameworks speak the language of policy and development. On this particular Thursday in Lilongwe, however, they became personal.They looked like an 11-year-old imagining herself as a CEO. A Form Four student discovering that communications could be part of her future. A 15-year-old deciding that the sky should not be her limit. A 17-year-old walking into a United Nations office she once barely understood and leaving able to imagine herself working there.At the end of the day, Adda-Dontoh left the girls with a final message:“I hope you leave believing that your dreams are valid, that your voice matters and that your future is bright.”For an initiative built around opening doors, perhaps that is where the significance lies: not in deciding what each girl will eventually become, but in making sure she has seen enough of what is possible to know that she can become something.

For the widowed mother of four, farming is no longer just a means of survival. It is helping her rebuild a future that once seemed out of reach. When Eunice's husband passed away in 2013 after a year-long illness, life changed dramatically. The family had spent all their earnings on medical expenses, leaving little behind to sustain the household. "As a family, we used to grow soybeans, maize, and groundnuts," Eunice recalls. "But even when we harvested enough, finding a reliable market was always a challenge." After her husband's death, the burden of caring for four children fell entirely on her shoulders. Limited income meant difficult choices. One by one, three of her children dropped out of school because she could no longer afford to support their education. For years, Eunice struggled to provide food, clothing, and school necessities while trying to make a living from farming. In 2023, Eunice joined the Chindindindi farmers' cooperative in Mzimba that brings together smallholder farmers to improve production, access markets, and strengthen livelihoods.The cooperative, which now has 210 members, including 120 women, has transformed farming from an individual struggle into a collective enterprise. Through the group, members have access to training, village savings and loans (VSL), modern farming techniques, and most importantly, a reliable market for their produce. For Eunice, this support came at the right time. Through the cooperative, she gained access to a ready market secured collectively by members. Instead of spending weeks or months searching for buyers, she can now sell her produce quickly at competitive prices. "The biggest change for me has been knowing that there is a market for what I produce," she says. "I can sell faster and earn income when I need it."  Eunice also joined the cooperative's Village Savings and Loans (VSL) activities, giving her access to savings and financial support that were previously unavailable.The cooperative has benefited from support provided through United Nations Global Accelerator joint programme "Accelerating Employment Creation and Social Protection through Integrated Agriculture Value Chain Development," implemented by UN Women, International Labour Organisation (ILO), and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture. Through this UN joint initiative, Farmer Cooperatives and Organizations across Mzimba, Dowa and Mzuzu have received training in climate-smart agriculture, Fish farming, conservation agriculture, agroforestry, value addition, market surveys, household visioning, and gender-responsive agribusiness practices. These interventions have helped farmers improve productivity while strengthening household decision-making and resilience.Today, Eunice's circumstances are beginning to change.The income she earns from soybean farming has enabled her to keep her youngest child in school. Recently, the child sat for the Junior Certificate of Education examinations, a milestone that fills Eunice with pride."I hope to see my youngest child complete school," she says. "I don't want him to face the same challenges as his older siblings, who had to stop their education because I couldn't afford the costs." For Eunice, education represents opportunity, dignity, and the possibility of breaking the cycle of poverty. Her story reflects the broader transformation taking place within the cooperative. In recent years, members have used earnings from farming to build modern homes, purchase livestock and farming equipment, start transport businesses, and invest in agricultural inputs. The cooperative has also increased soybean production significantly through climate-smart farming practices and improved market access. But for Eunice, the greatest achievement is much simpler. It is knowing that her family's future looks brighter than it did a few years ago.Eunice's journey demonstrates the power of collective action, market access, and targeted support for rural women farmers. The UN joint programme is contributing to stronger livelihoods, improved food security, and greater opportunities for future generations by helping women overcome barriers to productive agriculture and secure sustainable incomes. For Eunice, every bag of soybeans harvested is more than a crop. It is a step toward stability, independence, and the dream of seeing her child succeed where circumstances once stood in the way.

Malawi has achieved a key milestone towards skills development by recognizing and certifying skills acquired outside formal education and training, with the graduation of the first cohort of artisans assessed and certified through the country’s Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) system. The milestone was marked at the first-ever RPL graduation ceremony held at the Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe), where 100 artisans received certificates recognizing competencies gained through years of work experience and informal learning. The 100 graduates are part of an initial cohort of more than 500 artisans assessed and certified through the RPL programme. RPL provides a mechanism for individuals to have their existing knowledge, skills and competencies assessed and formally recognized, regardless of where or how those skills were acquired. For Malawi, where 91.5 per cent of employed people work in the informal economy, RPL represents an important pathway for improving employability, productivity and competitiveness while promoting access to formal employment, skills development and social protection.The initiative has focused on strengthening Malawi’s institutional capacity to sustainably roll out RPL at scale. Technical support has been provided to the Ministry of Labour, Skills and Innovation and the Technical, Entrepreneurial and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TEVETA) to develop national RPL guidelines, procedure manuals and assessment tools; training of assessors; and conducting the initial assessments and certification of artisans.This approach is helping establish the foundations of a nationally owned system through which workers can have skills acquired through informal learning and work experience assessed and certified in a consistent, credible and sustainable manner.Representing the Minister of Labour, Skills and Innovation, the Guest of Honour at the graduation ceremony, Mr. George Masinga, Director of Administration in the Ministry of Labour, described RPL as a strategic intervention supporting Malawi’s long-term development ambitions. “Recognition of Prior Learning is a strategic intervention that contributes to the realisation of Malawi 2063 by recognizing, validating and developing the skills of our workforce.” he stated.For workers, RPL enhances employability, credibility, productivity and competitiveness, while creating pathways to better jobs opportunities, higher incomes, skills development, career progression and social protection. “Before this achievement many doubted my abilities because I had no formal qualification, I now have confidence because people will trust my work”, said Owen M’bona, a refrigeration and air-conditioning technician after receiving his RPL certificate. Owen never attended formal training to become a refrigeration and air-conditioning technician. He learnt the trade by assisting a friend at a refrigeration workshop, gradually building his competencies through practical experience, dedication and hard work. His experience reflects that of thousands of skilled Malawians who acquired their competencies outside formal classrooms and training institutions. Through RPL, these skills can now be assessed against recognized occupational standards and formally certified. For artisans like Owen M’bona, certification will strengthen credibility with employers and customers while creating opportunities for further training, formal employment, business growth and career progression. Mr. Wellington Chibebe, ILO Country Director for Malawi and Zambia, encouraged the graduates to become ambassadors for the system. “Your certificates are not only a recognition of the skills you have acquired; they are also an opportunity to demonstrate what you can do. We encourage you to become ambassadors of RPL, to demonstrate excellence in your work and to inspire other skilled workers to have their competencies recognized.” The development and initial rollout of Malawi’s RPL system has been driven by the leadership of the Ministry of Labour and TEVETA, with support from the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations system. The initiative has received support through the Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions, with financial support from the Government of the Republic of Korea and the Government of Norway. The programme has also benefited from collaboration among employers’ and workers’ organizations, industry assessors, training institutions, development partners and, most importantly, the artisans who participated in the assessment process. As Malawi continues to implement its development aspirations under Malawi 2063, strengthening mechanisms that recognize and develop the country’s existing skills base will be critical to building a productive, inclusive and competitive workforce. The RPL system is also contributing to Malawi’s broader efforts to promote decent work, employment creation, expansion of social protection coverage and skills development including lifelong learning. By recognizing skills acquired through work experience and informal learning, the RPL programme will help address barriers that prevent workers from accessing formal skills development and employment opportunities. It is also providing employers with greater confidence in the competencies of workers and contributes to improved productivity and competitiveness. For the artisans whose skills have been formally recognized, the journey is only beginning. Their certificates represent recognition and appreciation of their years of experience and a new pathway towards greater opportunities, dignity, decent work and livelihoods. Together, Malawi is building a labour market where skills are valued, experience is recognized and no worker is left behind.