Think Malawi held its hybrid Annual General Meeting (AGM) in London, and via Zoom, on Saturday, 13th January. We would like to thank Chief Nation for providing the London venue for the AGM. The meeting brought together a diverse group of attendees and speakers, from across the world, to recognise the achievements of the charity in the last year.
As we reflect on this recently convened AGM, this article highlights the notable individuals who attended. In attendance were volunteers and also representatives from our Malawian grassroots partner organisations: Ladders for Learning, Umuthu Plus, Mzuzu Girls Prison School Project and Umodzi Youth Organisation.
Co-Founder Steve McInery highlighted: “We have worked a a number of ways in the past… but what we have discovered that works best for us is working with Malawi NGOs and organisations who implement the projects in Malawi”
We would also like to thank the Malawi High Commission for sending a representative, Reverend Macdonald Sembereka Counsellor to attend the AGM and all others who joined the AGM, who added: “It's a pleasure to be here and participate in this meeting on behalf of the Malawi government”.
The AGM began with general introductions led by Co-Chair Alex Steel, before Steve Mclnerny led the AGM through the prepared presentation of the charity's 2023 achievements alongside other speakers.
A number of project partners provided an overview of our key Malawian project. Including:
Kate Hauxwell, Think Malawi Trustee, spoke for the Foundation of Hope:
“This was a £3,000 funding from Think Malawi but actually so much of the work that was done, was not paid for as it was a voluntary contribution from the community”
Faida Phiri from Umuthu Plus:
“During the struggles of Cyclone Freddy last year we reached out to Think Malawi to assist us… addressing the needs of young girls and women who were affected”
Steve McInerny/Shora spoke on behalf of Shy Ali of Umodzi Youth Organisation:
“Likulu primary school only had 4 toilets for its 3,000 learners… we built 8 Ecosan toilets”
Masida Hastings Ziba of STRADE spoke about Mzuzu Girls Prison Girls Secondary School project:
“Main achievements we are shown during last year’s end of MSE exams we had the very first female prisoner… selected to apply for admission into public universities… and some of them are being pardoned”
Patience Khembo from Ladder for Learning:
“We were aiming to motivate students to work hard in school, to inspire students, of course, for their future and to expose and connect students to different periods and role models. So we were able to reach over 5000 students”
All spoke at length about the projects they had completed over the previous year with the help of Think Malawi and the opportunities that have been created for girls in primary and secondary education which will be reviewed in depth in a future article
Following the project overview, Think Malawi volunteers provided updates on the progression of the charity over the 2023.
Caroline Head, PR Trustee, in the Marketing and Social Media Report highlighted:
“LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram are the key feeds we reach out and engage with our audiences”
“Great coverage was generated for our Pedal with a Purpose campaign across the media, including the Daily Mail Online, The Independent, Evening Standard also also across Africa”
Saniya Patel, Think Malawi Volunteer: A volunteer’s view, her experiences as a volunteer
“Volunteering for about two years, particularly doing work within social media including Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook”
“Trying to raise awareness of Malawian culture through our social media platforms… recently did an interview with a Malawian musician named Maggie Kudrow”
Natalie Mendez, the New Fundraising Trustee gave the Fundraising report:
“Provisional figure for this year is around £22,000… a high on four year basis”
“Continued our relationship with the LFC Charitable Trust… they have us a sizable grant as part of the fundraising initiative”
“With the new trustee we can now plan on a long-term basis”
Steve McInerny. Co-Founder Of Think Malawi for the Finance Report noted:
“Income last year was just under £22,000, the year before it was just under £6,000”
“Consistently over 90% of our income goes into the projects in Malawi”
Alex Steel. AGM Co-Chair said in the Chair’s Report:
“We have seen all the successes… fundraising being the highest ever that is a success, all the projects, a success, and that we are all here today is a success”
After this there were questions to the trustees and The High Council’s Reverend Macdonald Sembereka spoke to the AGM.
“I want to express gratitude for what you do, perhaps other take it granted, but we can’t”
“The government will continue my position to support the work you do. And so I'm grateful that we managed to get the High Commission off to see you off when you were going on the cycle for purpose. And we will continue working with you.”
These are just a few of the important things that Reverend Sembereka said to the attendees and it was fantastic to have him as the government's representative at our AGM.
After this we facilitated an open Q&A which discussed the potential future improvements for Malawian education and also the work we can plan for the coming year.
We were extremely thankful to have all these great charities and people attend and enjoyed listening to our keynote speakers speeches about their projects and the progression of Think Malawi over the past year.
An article summarising our 2023 activities will be published in the near future.