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Joyce Banda

Joyce Banda
President of Malawi Joyce Banda (8985928177).jpg
President of Malawi
In office
7 April 2012 – 31 May 2014
Vice President Khumbo Kachali
Preceded by Bingu wa Mutharika
Succeeded by Peter Mutharika
Vice President of Malawi
In office
29 May 2009 – 7 April 2012
President Bingu wa Mutharika
Preceded by Cassim Chilumpha
Succeeded by Khumbo Kachali
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
1 June 2006 – 29 May 2009
President Bingu wa Mutharika
Preceded by George Chaponda
Succeeded by Etta Banda
Personal details
Born Joyce Hilda Ntila
(1950-04-12) 12 April 1950 (age 66)
Malemia, Nyasaland
(now Malawi)
Political party United Democratic Front (Before 2004)
Democratic Progressive Party (2004–2010)
People's Party (2011–present)
Spouse(s) Roy Kachale (Before 1981)
Richard Banda
Children 5
Alma mater Columbus University
Atlantic International University
Royal Roads University

Joyce Hilda Banda (née Mtila; born 12 April 1950) is a Malawian politician who was the President of Malawi from 7 April 2012 to 31 May 2014. She is the founder and leader of the People's Party, created in 2011.

An educator and grassroots women's rights activist, she was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and Vice-President of Malawi from May 2009 to April 2012.

Banda took office as President following the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika. She was Malawi's fourth president and its first female president. Before becoming president, she served as the country's first female vice-president.

She was a member of parliament and Minister for Gender, Children's Affairs and Community Services. Before her active career in politics she was the founder of the Joyce Banda Foundation, founder of the National Association of Business Women (NABW), Young Women Leaders Network and the Hunger Project.

In 2014, Forbes named President Banda as the 40th most powerful woman in the world and the most powerful woman in Africa.

In November 2016, Banda announced she is willing to run for president in the 2019 upcoming Malawian presidential elections.

Joyce Hilda Ntila was born on 12 April 1950 in Malemia, a village in the Zomba District of Nyasaland (now Malawi). Her father was a police brass band musician. She began her career as a secretary and became a well-known figure during the rule of dictator Hastings Banda (no relation).

She has a Cambridge School Certificate, a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Early Childhood Education from Columbus University (an unaccredited distance education institution), a Bachelor of Social Studies in Gender Studies from the Atlantic International University(Honolulu Hawaii) and a Diploma in Management of NGOs from the International Labour Organization (ILO) Centre in Turin, Italy. Currently, she is studying for a Master of Arts Degree in Leadership at Royal Roads University in Canada. She received an honorary doctorate in 2013 from Jeonju University.


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