Meet this weeks cool kid on campus, Candice Chirwa.
Academic, businesswoman, motivational speaker and United Nations junior consultant Candice Chirwa, is taking the world by storm and adding her own special brand of “black girl magic” to resolving gender issues. Chirwa talked to Wits Vuvuzela about her successes, struggles and future aspirations.
Currently studying her honours in international relations at Wits, Chirwa initially became interested in motivational work last year when she spoke at a graduation for the non-governmental organisation StepUp Academy. According to Chirwa, “Ever since then, I’ve just found I have a love and a talent for speaking to women and empowering them.”
Her passion for combating women’s issues and international affairs is reflected in her post at the UN, as a junior consultant dealing with menstrual hygiene. The 21-year-old also seeks to empower women throughout her career. This is evident in her work as a tutor for young upcoming women at Wits and in her initiative called Project You. “Project You is basically a women’s network that focuses on working as a unit to enrich ourselves and work towards being the woman we want to be,” said Chirwa.
Chirwa told Wits Vuvuzela that following her dreams has not always been easy, “It was a very humbling experience, but the one thing that I hated about it was that I doubted myself in the process,” she said. Chirwa, however, aspires to continue to fight against inequality on a global scale saying, “I see myself being the human rights or gender officer for the United Nations, living in New York.”
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