By Brenard Mwanza
LILONGWE, Malawi — Right Reverend Vincent Frederick Mwakhwawa, the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Lilongwe, has urged Catholic Sisters in Malawi to use entrepreneurship to advance the Church’s mission, promote human dignity and address social and economic challenges in their communities.
He made the call on Friday, 7 August 2026, during the graduation ceremony of the Sisters’ Blended Value Project Social Entrepreneurship Programme in Lilongwe, held under the theme, “Faith in Action: Women Religious Leading Sustainable and Scalable Social Enterprises.”
Bishop Mwakhwawa, who represented Right Reverend Peter Adrian Chifukwa, Bishop President of the Association of Women Religious Institutes of Malawi (AWRIM) and the Association of Men Religious Institutes of Malawi (AMRIM) at the Malawi Conference of Catholic Bishops (MCCB), said the skills acquired through the programme should go beyond generating income.
“The entrepreneurial skills you have acquired are not merely for financial sustainability; they are instruments for advancing the missionary works of the Church, for evangelisation, preaching the Gospel, bringing Christ to others, building the Kingdom of God, restoring human dignity, creating opportunities for others and strengthening the ministries entrusted to your congregations,” he said.
He described the graduation as a new beginning in the Sisters’ missionary journey.
“Today is not simply the completion of a course; it marks the beginning of a renewed mission,” he said.
Bishop Mwakhwawa encouraged the graduates to place the needs of people at the centre of their enterprises, looking beyond financial returns to the difference their initiatives can make in the lives of others.
Reflecting on the graduation theme, he placed particular emphasis on the word “scalable”, encouraging the Sisters to develop initiatives whose benefits can extend beyond their immediate communities.
“We should not be satisfied only when one enterprise succeeds in one community. We should ask whether successful ideas can be adapted, replicated and expanded so that their benefits reach many more people,” he said.
He urged the graduates to build their enterprises around five principles: responding to genuine community needs; managing them professionally and transparently; measuring social impact alongside financial performance; working collaboratively; and remaining open to learning, adaptation and innovation.
Drawing on Catholic Social Teaching, Bishop Mwakhwawa said social entrepreneurship can contribute to integral human development when guided by Gospel values.
He referred to Pope St Paul VI’s 1967 Encyclical Populorum Progressio, which emphasises that authentic development must be centered on the human person rather than the pursuit of wealth for its own sake.
The bishop also called for continued mentorship and follow-up as the graduates begin applying their newly acquired skills in their communities.
He described the certificates presented to the sisters as not only recognition of their achievement, but also a responsibility to place their knowledge and skills at the service of God’s people.
“May the enterprises you establish not only generate resources but also transform lives, empower young people, support vulnerable families, and contribute to the holistic development of our nation,” he said.
The Sisters’ Blended Value Project seeks to strengthen the capacity of Catholic Sisters to establish sustainable social enterprises through skills development, networking, information hubs and access to financial services.
Funded by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, the initiative is implemented by Strathmore University Business School based in Kenya, in partnership with the Association of Consecrated Women in Eastern and Central Africa (ACWECA).
Bishop Mwakhwawa commended ACWECA for its vision and commitment to empowering women religious and recognised AWRIM for coordinating the initiative in Malawi.
The project is being implemented in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania and Malawi, with the aim of equipping Sisters with the skills, networks and support needed to sustain social enterprises beyond the grant period.
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