Feminine Silence

Walking on Glass Shells

By Nthanda Manduwi
Launched September 14, 2025

The first seeds of this book were planted long before I stepped into global boardrooms or tech campuses.

They were sown in lecture halls at the University of Malawi, where I pursued a dual-major in Economics and Demography under the School of Law, Economics & Government and the Department of Sociology and Population Studies.

In 2016, as part of my undergraduate work, I wrote two dissertations:

The Gender Earnings Disparities by Occupation in Malawi
The Impact of Women’s Empowerment on the Unmet Need for Family Planning in Malawi

Those projects were more than academic requirements to me — they were my first deep dive into understanding how data, policy, and lived experience collide to shape women’s lives.

I began to see the patterns: women being concentrated in low paying jobs; women’s autonomy over their bodies and choices dictated by cultural norms; systems that claimed to champion equality but maintained deep structural biases.

Years later, after working across sectors — from the United Nations and the World Bank to founding my own organizations and joining Microsoft — I’ve returned to those questions with a broader lens, richer stories, and sharper tools.

Feminine Silence is my attempt to synthesize some lessons around what I know.

It is part memoir, part manifesto, part love letter to the women and men who have shaped me. Across its chapters, I explore what it means to lead as “the first,” why meritocracy is not enough, how culture shapes womanhood, and what it will take to build futures that are truly unbound.

The book is anchored in personal stories — of navigating global systems, mentoring young women, building partnerships, and falling in love — but its vision extends beyond my own life. It is about possibility, representation, and the collective work of dismantling the quiet scripts that teach women to shrink themselves.

Feminine Silence is for the women who have been told to wait their turn, the girls learning to trust their voices, and the men committed to building a world where both are heard.

This is the continuation of a journey I began as an undergraduate student, but it is also just the beginning of a much bigger conversation. I’m grateful you’re here to be part of it.

STOP THE COUNT

Over the years, my work — from the United Nations to Microsoft — has deepened this commitment. When I worked with the UNDP Independent Evaluation, I helped explore a reflection paper on Masculinities and Engaging Men for Gender Equality.

I believe the work only begins with ending child marriage and curbing gender-based violence. I think that is merely the starting point. True transformation requires us to reimagine systems, redistribute power, and dismantle the quiet scripts that keep women from fully thriving.

And we cannot do it alone. We MUST all get involved. This is why I am deeply delighted to align the launch of Feminine Silence with partners like Equality Now, UN Women Africa, UN Trust Fund EVAW, and the European Union — as together, we amplify voices and demand protection for girls everywhere.

Here’s one way you can act today: Call your government to account. Visit equalitynow.org/get-involved/stop-the-count/ to access a ready-to-go email to your national assembly clerk and let them know that #EnoughisEnough and it’s time to #StopTheCount.