Written by: Dr Pearl Kupe
Article source: Supplied
Last week, I was devastated to hear of the passing of Chief Theresa Kachindamoto on the 13th August, 2025. Chief Theresa Kachindamoto, also fondly known as the “Chief Terminator”, was the paramount chief, or Inkosi, of the Dedza District in the central region of Malawi. She had informal authority over close to one million people and was known for her abhorrence of forced child marriages.
Almost singlehandedly she broke up over 850 child marriages to ensure that the girls went back to school, and also facilitated the banning of sexual initiations of girls.
In 2019 I travelled with our GFWE(Global Forum of Women Entrepreneurs) team to see her in her village of Dedza and interview her. She narrated a story to me of how she was walking in her village one day and found a little girl of not older than 10 years, carrying a baby on her back.She asked the little girl why she was carrying her baby brother, instead of being in school and was shocked to learn that the baby was hers, and not her baby brother.It was at that moment she said, that she decided to dedicate her life to rescuing children form early child marriages and ensure that they went back to school.
She was instrumental in driving a bill in the Malawian parliament to ensure that girl children could not be taken out of school before the age of eighteen. In my last conversation with her she told me that men were now waiting for the girls to turn eighteen and then take them out of school, so she proposed that we go to parliament to change to law to twenty one so that the girls could get a chance to go to university.She also proposed that we find a way to skill and empower those that did not get opportunities to go to University.
She was fearless and focussed in her mandate and pursuit for justice. I recall her telling me of how she had received death threats because of challenging this practise. She said that some men and some local chiefs had threatened her life accusing her of changing and threatening their culture. When I asked her what her response was, she said she told them that “she was not afraid of them and that even if they killed her, they can only kill her body and she would go to her Father in heaven, whereas they would go to hell”
In February 2019, in my capacity as the International President of Global Forum of Women Entrepreneurs (GFWE), I travelled with the National GFWE Malawi President , Ms. Nasreen Khonat and other members of the GFWE Malawi Executive team to visit Chief Theresa Kachindamoto to interview her. At the end of the interview I expressed a desire to partner with her and support her endeavours.Chief Theresa Kachindamoto agreed to a formal partnership which was sealed through a formal signed Memorandum of Understanding. It was agreed that GFWE would support Chief Theresa in her fight against child marriages, predominantly by helping to:
- facilitate change and amend legislation where needed;
- ensure that the girl child is kept in school for as long as possible
- teach, train, skill and empower those who have been affected by child marriages; and
- educate the general population in Malawi about the basic human rights of girls to education
Chief Theresa Kachindamoto was also the first recipient of a GFWE, Global Forum of Entrepreneurs Award. She was awarded the GFWE Nation Builder Award in September, 2019. In honour of her lasting legacy, GFWE will be renaming the Nation Builder award and calling it the Chief Theresa Kachindamoto Nation Builder Award.
We salute Chief Theresa Kachindamoto and her phenomenal efforts to bring sustainable cultural change in Malawi and beyond.We commend her great efforts to ensure alignment to the UN SDG, sustainable development goals of ensuring that the girl child was protected and received an education.
Qhawe la ma Qhawe,
Hero of Heroes!
Pearl Kupe-Attorney & International consultant to world leaders & International organizations. She is the International President-Global Forum for Women Entrepreneurs- www.gfwe.co.za . Personal website on www.Pearlkupe.co.za. She is the TBN Africa DSTAV channel 343 Host on Ambassador of Change, Sundays at 13h00 and Wednesdays at 09h30 and 19h30(SAST)
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Date published: 25/08/2025
Feature image: Supplied
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