Dancing for Democracy: Understanding Malawi's First Female President

Abstract

There are 54 countries on the African continent, but only one has managed to elect a woman, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in Liberia, as chief executive. While African countries face unique issues, there is a common thread in the struggles of female politicians in male-dominated, traditional societies. The case of Joyce Banda, the President of Malawi, is illustrative.

Section snippets

Malawi's History

Scottish explorer David Livingston reached Lake Nyasa, in what is now Malawi, in 1859. By 1891 Malawi was part of the British Central African Protectorate, with British plantations quickly dotting the map. Later, the territory of Malawi became part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, but until 1964 it was still under British rule. Two years later Malawi adopted its first constitution.

Malawi's political history since its independence has been evolutionary not revolutionary. That's the...

A Legacy of Corruption and Cronyism

Dr. Hastings Kamuzu-Banda (no relation to Joyce), an American-trained medical doctor who had spent 20 years practicing in Britain and known for his simple, almost puritanical, lifestyle, was instrumental in Malawian independence. His supporters called him “the black messiah.” When he returned to Africa in 1958, he was initially considered a moderate who primarily organized protests against British rule. But as Great Britain tried to create a union of the two Rhodesias—now Zambia and

Marilyn Moss Rockefeller is a freelance writer based in Camden, Maine who has traveled in Africa as a mentor at a Global Student Leadership International Workshop, and spent two weeks with politician Joyce Banda in 2009...

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