AWARD Fellow Nkumbu Mutwale, a research officer at the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute, recently spoke to some 250 female students at Kabunda Girls Secondary School in Mansa, Zambia, a poor rural area where people earn their livelihoods through fishing and cassava cultivation. Early marriages are common here and education is not always valued.

“I met in advance with the headteacher, who gave an overview of the school and the challenges it faces early marriages, poor reading culture, and missed lessons,” says Mutwale. Her focus was to encourage the girls and motivate them to aim high despite their circumstances. Teachers, farmers, and researchers also participated.

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