Meet Nthanda, a Women’s Rights Advocate and Entrepreneur

By Seema Jalan

An estimated 20 million adolescent women want to prevent pregnancy but are not using a modern form of contraception. Around the world, young people are advocating in their communities for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights for all.

Meet Nthanda, age 23, Malawian:

During her studies at the University of Malawi, Nthanda stumbled by chance on a course on population studies and demography.

“As we were registering for courses, a friend of mine had told me that the course had a lot of mathematics in an attempt to scare me, not knowing that numbers were my strength,” said Nthanda. “I opted for the course and ended up loving it.”

Over time, Nthanda learned about the population challenges in her country and decided to explore women’s reproductive health and rights. Her dissertation focused on the intersection of women’s empowerment and their decisions about using contraception, and showed a clear connection: Women who felt more empowered and took part in decision-making in their home had more freedom to make their own informed choices about if and when to have children. And so, Nthanda became a champion of the importance of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights, including access to contraception.

Now, Nthanda runs a media advocacy startup in Malawi, By Ntha Media, through which she and a community of young people create content to champion issues like sexual and reproductive health and rights and women’s empowerment.

“We have the goal of rebranding the African continent as a place of hope, and not a land that is struggling and dying,” said Nthanda. “We want to advocate for change, while focusing on the positive social/advocacy work being done by and for the youth, and showing the impact of the results. We have made such tremendous progress from the time we started and are very optimistic about the future.”

In addition to highlighting young voices, Nthanda recognizes the role of men in the women’s movement: “It is in our best interest that both men and women are empowered, and it is within the interest of both genders to make sure the opposite gender is empowered,” she said. “Empowering a woman does not mean disempowering a man. I empower the men I care about, and they empower me.”

Nthanda’s advice? Do not take a “singular view” on advocacy.

“Acknowledge differences; we are very different human beings with very vast stories and experiences,” she said. “As such, we must make sure every person we advocate for feels heard. …It must be inclusive.”

Access to quality sexual and reproductive health information and services is a fundamental human right and a key intervention to enable young people everywhere to pursue an education, launch a career, and control their futures. Learn more about the Universal Access Project and get involved at www.universalaccessproject.org.