Hara, Mia get regional awards

Speaker of Parliament Catherine Gotani Hara and Minister of Water and Sanitation Abida Mia have been recognised by the Leading Women of Africa (LWA) for being  influential in their roles in politics and business.

The event took place on Saturday evening in Lilongwe where the regional women’s forum also encouraged women to support each other and create room for the growth of others.

Hara was recognised as the first female Speaker of the National Assembly in Africa and in an interview, she said the award is a great inspiration to all women.

“We should not look at this award as an individual award but an achievement of all women because some are going to be inspired by this, especially those who take us as their role models,” she said.

Hara urged women in the country to always work in partnership and support each other to advance the socio-economic development of the country and their families.

She said it is worrisome that some women pull each other down instead of holding each other up for the betterment of the country.

On her part, Mia said: “Women are a big asset to the national development agenda, as such, they need to be active and participate in developmental matters.”

LWA president Madeleine Nkunu said it is always encouraging to see women working together and being appointed in various decision-making positions.

“The coming of the LWA in Malawi will further coordination amongst Malawian women and open more markets for Malawian entrepreneurs,” she said.

LWA was founded as a Pan-African Forum that continuously promotes efforts to position women’s economic empowerment in 32 African countries.