Sister doing it for herself!

Read article on “Sister doing it for herself!” at mywage.org. Beatrice Chiumia is one of very few women in Malawi who have made their mark in the auto-electrical field. Read more about career of Beatrice Chiumia.

By Madalitso Kateta

Beatrice Chiumia is a young woman who is excelling in the auto electrical field.

Chiumia spoke to Mywage Malawi about her career in what has traditionally been a very male-dominated field.

Now holding a very senior position, she says her early determination to be different from other women has been a major factor in her success.

“My father was an auto electrician and as a young girl I used to watch him working on different electronic equipment. I was motivated to follow in his footsteps,” she said.

Chiumia said that her formal journey into electronics started when she applied for an auto electrical course that was offered by the Technical, Entrepreneurial and Training Authority (TEVETA) in Malawi soon after obtaining her Malawi School Certificate of Education Certificate (MSCE).

Despite her heavy work schedule Chiumia said that she has never regretted her choice to go into the electronics field.

“I still have time for my daughter and we usually spend the weekends together,” said Chiumia.

Asked how she copes in a profession where the majority are men, Chiumia said that during work she considers herself the same as every other technician.

“The secret to professional success is being a team player,” she said.

Chiumia’s advice to young girls wishing to pursue her career is that they need to work hard at school, adding that they needed good qualifications.

“There is no satisfaction when you get handed things on a silver platter. You need to sweat to get to the top,” she said.

To study to be an auto electrician one needs a Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) with good grades, particularly in the sciences. Institutions that offer the course are the University of Malawi Polytechnic, and government-run technical colleges that are in the cities of Blantyre, Lilongwe and Mzuzu. Other private institutions have also started offering the course.

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