Like many others, Rachel Mazombwe-Zulu became Member of Parliament (MP) for Mchinji North Constituency following calls from members of her constituency.
Before she became MP, the constituency had many challenges such as bad roads, no health facilities and lack of electricity.
In the past 10 years she has been MP, the constituency has had a tarmac road all the way to its hub, eight centres electrified, school blocks and maternity shelters built, and, also bridges have been constructed in several areas.
Born on June 11 1973 at Likuni Hospital in Lilongwe, Mazombwe-Zulu comes from a family of nine children, and she is the third-born. She has been voted into power twice, since 2009.
Mazombwe-Zulu says: “People were happy and satisfied with my work. I have dedicated my time and money to them, and they like me so much that they voted me for a second time as MP. I have been a dedicated servant of the people in my area to the point that now I am going to be voted in for the third time.”
The legistlator maintains that her running for the third time is just so she can carry on her development projects in her constituency.
With women forming the minority of parliamentarians, she joins others in calling for an increased number of women in the National Assembly.
“Malawi Parliament needs women. We have many issues that need the contribution of women in Parliament. For instance, we have to back some laws that concern women and children. All in all, parties must be gender-sensitive,” she says.
The MP calls on her fellow legislators to dedicate themselves to the work of their people in the constituencies, and to work selflessly.
However, Mazombwe-Zulu notes that there is a lot of demand from people, for MPs to do development work as well as help them in their social lives. She maintains that some of these things are not supposed to be done by the MP, but she strives to meet such needs to a certain degree.
Married to George Zulu, hers is a family of three children. As a young girl, Rachel grew up at Biwi Township in Lilongwe, where she lived with her parents.
Later, she moved to Mchinji, at John Village where she stayed until she went to Mchinji Secondary School.
Upon completion of her secondary school education, she worked as a teacher before joining the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, as a data entry clerk.
Then she decided to advance her studies and acquired a diploma in business administration. She then left the civil service to become an assistant in the office of the chief executive at Malawi Union of Savings and Credit Cooperative (Muscco).
