On February 25th, 2022, I was honored to stand on stage at the Startup Masterclass hosted by MAIIC Wealth at BICC. The theme, โSetting the Right Mindset in Business,โ could not have been more aligned with the reflections I carried into that roomโreflections on a journey that began over ten years ago, and the road still ahead.
A Look Back: 10 Years in Digital Media
When I entered Malawiโs digital media space, it wasnโt called that yet.
There were no ecosystems. No blueprints. No real โindustryโ as we think of it today. Just a handful of us creating content, building brands, experimenting with platforms, and hoping the internet could be more than just entertainmentโit could be opportunity.
I spoke at the Masterclass about how those early years taught me more than any classroom ever could. I learned how to tell stories that resonate. How to build trust in the digital space. How to monetize creativity in an economy that didnโt yet know how to value it. I stumbled through pricing, partnerships, policy gapsโand kept moving forward, always learning.
By 2022, I had not only worked with countless brands across the region, but had also founded BIEN Corp and established the Ntha Foundationโbuilding out platforms that supported digital and creative entrepreneurs across Africa. The speech was both a celebration of survival and a testimony to the power of intentionality.
A Look Forward: The Next 10 Years
In that same room, I also laid out my vision for the future.
Because while itโs good to reflect, the real work is in reimagining whatโs next.
I shared that the next decade would not just be about contentโit would be about infrastructure. About institutions. About moving from creator to builder. I knew it was time to move from being the face of the work to designing systems that outlive me.
I spoke about scaling the Nyenyezi Fellowship, not just as a feel-good program for creatives, but as a Mini-MBA for Africaโs future founders. A place where business fluency meets digital innovationโwhere pricing, finance, and sustainability are no longer afterthoughts but foundations.
I also shared dreams of investing in agriculture, gaming, and education techโfields where digital meets real-world impact. The plan was to pivot from storytelling to story-shapingโusing data, strategy, and systems to change the narrative of African business.
A Timestamp
The Masterclass was more than an eventโit was a timestamp.
A marker of transition. From early adopter to ecosystem builder. From digital talent to strategic entrepreneur. From reactive to visionary.
As I stood among other brilliant Malawian mindsโfounders, CEOs, academics, innovatorsโI knew the journey wasnโt just mine. It was collective. We were all building something in a country that often forgets to make space for builders.
But if thereโs one thing Iโve learned in ten years, itโs this:
No one will build it for us.
So we build it ourselves.
One fellowship. One hub. One pivot at a time.
Watch my speech below.
Ntha
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