On a chilly Friday, the cheers roar inside out at Bingu International Convention Centre in Lilongwe.
Families glisten with joy, graduands beam and camera flash.
May 23 2025 is no ordinary day for Choice Kunthani, 27, from Phalombe District. A dream once too big for his family’s income has come true.
Clad in academic robes, he walks across the stage and into history as the first graduate sponsored by Mkango Resources’ scholarship from secondary school to university.
“It still feels like a dream,” says Kunthani after receiving his computer science degree, his voice steady and eyes shimmering with unconcealed joy.
The eldest of four children in a family that could not afford his fees at Dedza Secondary School, he grew up in Mauzi-Mangazi Village, a hilly setting in Phalombe.
“Many were days I thought I couldn’t go beyond Standard 8,” he says. “My parents worked hard, but life was tough. Sometimes, they couldn’t afford a notebook.”
The turning point came when the mining firm, which was exploring rare earth minerals in Phalombe, launched a scholarship programme.
Kunthani, who had just been selected to Dedza Secondary School, was among the first selected to benefit from the scholarship.
“Mkango Resources paid for my fees and other basics. Most importantly, they gave me confidence. Without them, I wouldn’t be here,” he says.
From Dedza, Kunthani went to DMI-St John the Baptist University in Mangochi.
His mother Lisneti Mathewe, 45, could not hold tears of joy.
“When we heard that Mkango would support Choice, it was like a miracle,” she says. “Today, he has brought honour not just to our family but the whole village.”
Ethel Saiwala, Choice’s 19-year-old sister, had mixed emotions. She never made it past secondary school. Instead, she married young before the marriageable age of 18 due to poverty.
“I’m happy for my brother,” she said softly. “He has done what I only dreamed of. What if I had the same chance? Maybe I’d be in an academic gown too.”
The teenager wants girls in rural settings like her village to be given a chance to stay in school until their dreams come true.
“Let Choice’s story not end with him. Let it be the beginning for others, including girls,” she says.
Nearby, Mkango Resources country director Burton Choice rejoiced at the sight of Kunthani stepping up to recieved his hard-earned academic accolade.
To him,Choice’s victory is more than a corporate milestone—it was personal.
“We didn’t want to be just another mining company,” Kachinjika says. “We wanted to leave a footprint in people’s lives. Today, we’ve seen that happen in real time.”
Located about 90 kilometres from the commercial city of Blantyre, the mining firm’s Songwe Hill project in Phalombe is on the cusp of the construction phase which promises over 1 200 jobs for two years. The mine will employ another 500 annually during its 18-year projected span.
The jobs are just a slice of the cake, Kachinjika states.
“Yes, we’re bringing economic activity, but that must be matched with social investment: education, health and sustainable livelihoods. That’s the future we’re building together with the communities,” he narrates.
Before drilling began in Songwe Hill, the company convened community leaders to discuss local needs and education support came tops.
“We started with the basics: identifying the most promising students, removing the financial burden, and walking with them,” Kachinjika explains.
Back in the village under Traditional Authority Nazombe in Phalombe, the local village head, Mangazi, beamed with pride.
“Choice is our son,” he says. “His success is a victory for all of us here. It shows our children that their financial background shouldn’t clip their wings. Mkango’s support is not just for one boy, but the entire community’s future.”
The fresh graduate dreams of a future in cybersecurity and software development.
But he has a word for the youth in poverty, especially in his community where “many bright students are still waiting for a turn.
“To my brothers and other young people: Don’t give up. Even if you don’t see the way, keep moving. You could be next.”
On the ground, more scholarship recipients are climbing the radar in secondary school and into university.
As the pioneer cadre scales the rungs, more young people are beginning to see mining not just as digging rocks, but as building futures.
“This gown,” says Choice, “is a proof that the starting point doesn’t have to be your endpoint. Keep walking.”
