Malawian Women Musicians learn about rights

By Sam Banda Jnr

Music is a career which many young women in Malawi have engaged in, but many are unaware of their rights.

The Musicians Association of Malawi (Mam), which is set to become a union shortly, has thus far been operating with little participation from female musicians. The association has been running various projects involving mostly male musicians. However, this has led to many female musicians failing to know their rights, especially when it comes to issues such as signing contracts.

But now Mam has a women’s chapter, which has started strategising ahead of the formation of the union. It aims to protect the interests of female musicians in Malawi.

The women’s chapter held a workshop in July this year which was funded by the Swedish Musician’s Union, the Malawi Congress of Trade Unions (MCTU) and the Water Union. The workshop highlighted several gender issues and women workers’ rights, and also focused on bargaining skills.

Vice Chairperson of the women’s chapter, Bertha Nkhoma Nyirenda, said the women were happy with the formation of the union which will protect their interests.

“We feel the formation of the union will help us as female musicians to speak with one voice and through that our grievances will be heard. The workshop has enlightened us on how a union works,” said Nyirenda.

She said the female musicians held the workshop because “women are still behind in the music business.”

“If you look at the music industry in the country you’ll see that it’s mostly males at the forefront. The time has come for women to take a leading role in this business,” she said.

Another female musician, Rudo Chakwera, said women in music are sometimes frowned upon and are not treated equally when compared to their male counterparts.

“We even have problems accessing music markets. Men have more access to markets,” she said.

Malawi has more young female musicians - especially gospel musicians - compared to men. Mam president Costen Mapemba, who opened the workshop, said it was time female musicians got involved in the union business to advance their careers and strengthen their welfare.

“The women need to understand what a union is all about. They also need to know that as musicians they are workers and have rights. Many musicians have ended up signing contracts without knowing what they are about,” said Mapemba.

‘As female musicians they have a right to be protected, and they have a right to bargain. They also need to understand issues to do with strikes,” said Mapemba.