Voices of the Future...

“The problem is not resources…it’s resourcefulness” ~ adapted from Anthony Robbins, public motivational speaker.

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At half a century old, the beautiful Malawi has notably made progress towards development and the prosperity of her approximately 16 million people. Many interventions since independence in 1964 continue to impact the lives of Malawians today, like the University of Malawi, the road network and the transition to multiparty democracy. However, much is left to debate on whether the leaps to development have been ideal, or whether or not politics has made the best choices for the country’s citizens.

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For this debate to hold ground, and be meaningful, we recognize the importance of providing a safe medium where reason, logic and evidence are the foundations of opinion-making, the prerequisites to sensible action. So we join fellow publishers, online and otherwise, to offer the space for dialogue to all stakeholders as we contribute to the alleviation of poverty and freedom from its vices. Specifically, we offer a non-partisan product that counters the character of the majority of our journalistic space by providing quality and clarity of language, professional craftiness, and content-aware discourse on select issues associated with governance in the country and the Region.

 

We use the slogan “Voices of the Future” to signal the need to invoke the responsibility of current generations in shaping the Malawi their children and grandchildren will live in. As they navigate the future, these heirs will take the inevitable liberty to evaluate the merits of the vision of their forefathers' (and foremothers'), a.k.a. us, on a spectrum calibrated from foresightedness to the lack of it. It will be an evaluation of our pride today in the nation we fought so hard to release from the oppression of colonialism.

 

It is consequential, then, that this journey will require selfless governance, a distinct vision and the will to make it happen. We cannot argue that it is the choices that Malawians make that will determine whether we are steered in the right direction. But these choices will build a political system that will uniquely fabricate and manage an economic system that redresses the systemic challenges faced and seize the opportunities hanging before our very eyes. To preserve the notion of sovereignty, one main task will be to build a political economy that thrives on the cultural fabric that makes a country a nation, and one that anthropologically informs the potential for success of development interventions. More importantly, it is vital for Malawians to mobilize all good will, with promise of dignity for all women, men and children as rights holders of development, and the resolve to settle at nothing less.

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We encourage you to join this debate we embark on this year so the next half century of Malawi’s independence is a more joyous affair. We challenge you to share with Malawians and the world your logical, analytical and informed mind with regards to the measures that will lead us into overdue prosperity. That is a dimension of resourcefulness that Mr. Robbins envisages.

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Remember, there is no such thing as a stupid idea, just a bad solution to a real problem.