Catherine Gotani Hara is a

Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who has been the

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

since June 2019, the first woman to hold the position.

Early life and education

Gotani Hara attended

Kamuzu Academy Kamuzu Academy is a private boarding school in Kasungu, Malawi that was founded by, and named after, the late Hastings Kamuzu Banda, the former President of Malawi. It is described by its proponents as "The Eton of Africa". History The school ...

, and has a Bachelor of Arts in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from Chancellor College at the

University of Malawi The University of Malawi (UNIMA) is a public university A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant funding from a government. Whethe ...

. While studying, she ran the university's wing of the

Malawi Congress Party The Malawi Congress Party (MCP) is a political party in Malawi. It was formed as a successor party to the banned Nyasaland African Congress when the country, then known as Nyasaland, was under British rule. The MCP, under Hastings Banda, pre ...

. From 1998 to 2000, she completed professional postgraduate training in International Development and Project Planning and Management

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

Career

Gotani Hara was a Programme Officer for the UK's Department of International Development, the first Malawian to be recruited to that level. She was responsible for the sustainable livelihood projects for both

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

and Malawi. Gotani Hara was elected as the Member of Parliament for

Mzimba Mzimba is a town in the Mzimba District of Malawi. The district is inhabited by descendants of Tumbuka and few Ngoni people. The district of Mzimba has a number of Traditional Authorities from the Ngoni people. The head of these Traditional A ...

North East in 2009, representing the

Democratic Progressive Party The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a centre to centre-left Taiwanese nationalist political party in Taiwan. As the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition, one of the two main political camps in Taiwan, the DPP is currently the ...

. Gotani Hara was the Deputy Minister of Transport and Public Infrastructure, Deputy Minister for Gender, and the Minister for Health in the

Joyce Banda Joyce Hilda Banda (née Ntila; born 12 April 1950) is a Malawi, Malawian politician, who served as List of heads of state of Malawi, President of Malawi, from 7 April 2012 to 31 May 2014. Banda took office as President following the sudden deat ...

government. She represented the Malawi Head of State at a number of international events, and was the Chair of the Malawi delegation to the

Climate Change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

Summit in Brazil. She is a board member of the Northern Region Water Board. After the death of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Bingu wa Mutharika Bingu wa Mutharika (; born Brightson Webster Ryson Thom; 24 February 1934 – 5 April 2012) was a Malawian politician and economist who was President of Malawi from May 2004 until his death in April 2012. He was also President of the Democ ...

in 2012, she publicly declared that it unconstitutional for members in the ruling DPP politburo to take over the presidency. She took a break from politics from 2014 to 2019. Gotani Hara was re-elected in May 2019 representing Malawi Congress Party and on 19 June 2019, she was elected the first female Speaker of the

, with 97 votes to 93 over former deputy speaker

Esther Mcheka Chilenje Esther Mcheka Chilenje is a Malawian politician from the Democratic Progressive Party (Malawi), Democratic Progressive Party. She was MP for Nsanje North from 2014 to 2021. Career Mcheka Chilenje served as Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations ...

References

External links

Reaction to Gotani Hara's election as Speaker
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gotani Hara, Catherine Living people Alumni of Kamuzu Academy University of Malawi alumni Alumni of the University of Brighton Health ministers of Malawi Members of the National Assembly (Malawi) Year of birth missing (living people) Speakers of the National Assembly (Malawi) Malawi Congress Party politicians First women legislative speakers 21st-century Malawian women politicians 21st-century Malawian politicians