‘Chilima was a performer, a workaholic and has been an achiever everywhere he has been’

* First Malawian to head Airtel Malawi, the leading pan-African mobile telecommunications company in the southern Africa

* Before that, he held senior sales marketing positions in the banking sector and the fast moving consumer goods sector

* Namely the Leasing & Finance Company, Unilever Malawi, Coca-Cola and Carlsberg

* He was first sworn in as Vice-President of the Republic of Malawi on 30th May, 2014 and for his second term on 28th June, 2020

By Duncan Mlanjira

As the eulogies pour in for Vice-President Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima, who was found dead today in the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) aircraft crash alongside nine others, Maravi Express chronicles some of the achievements of the extraordinary citizen, who is described as a performer, a workaholic and has been an achiever everywhere he has been — as contained on his profile that was posted on the Malawi Government website.

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Wikipedia records that Chilima, born on February 12, 1973, was the first child of Henderson Brown Chilima of Ching’anga Village, T/A Njewa, Lilongwe and Elizabeth Frances Chilima of Mbilintengerenji Village, T/A Champiti, Ntcheu.

He spent most of his early life in Blantyre where his parents were working and spent his long school holidays with his paternal and maternal grandparents in the villages of Lilongwe and Ntcheu, respectively.

Chilima did his primary school at HHI and Dharap primary schools, and his secondary education at the Marist Brothers Mtendere Secondary School and went on to the University of Malawi, Chancellor College, where he graduated with a degree in social sciences in 1994. After working for a few years, he returned to his alma mater to pursue a master’s degree in Knowledge Management, graduating in 2006 and on August 10, 2015, Chilima received his Ph.D in Knowledge Management from the University of Bolton in the United Kingdom.

He was a devout Roman Catholic who held leadership positions within the church who later turned to the political arena when he was unveiled as running mate to Peter Mutharika for the 2014 general elections.

He was first sworn in as Vice-President of the Republic of Malawi on May 30, 2014 and for his second term on 28th June, 2020 but before joining politics, Chilima held key leadership positions in various multi-national companies including Unilever, Coca-Cola and Airtel Malawi where he became the first Malawian to the leading pan-African mobile telecommunications company as Managind Director.

He holds a PhD in Knowledge Management from the University of Bolton, a Master’s degree in Economics as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences, Computer Science and Economics from the University of Malawi.

Before venturing in telecommunications, he held Senior Sales Marketing positions in the banking sector and the fast moving consumer goods sector namely the Leasing & Finance Company, Unilever Malawi, Coca-Cola and Carlsberg.

The government website, highlights that working for Airtel Malawi, “Chilima drove business growth from 357,000 customers in 2006 to 2.8 million in December 2012 and improved employee satisfaction from 50% in 2006 to 80% in 2012.

“He coordinated the successful rebranding of Celtel to Zain in 2008 as measured by total market awareness of 52% (as of April 2010) and mobilization of employee buy-in — with further successful transition from Zain to Airtel in November and living a positive impression on all stakeholders.

“Significantly contributed to the OPCO performance such that the company was awarded ‘OPCO of the Year 2008’ as well as ‘Initiative of the Year’ with the Quick Refill Centers (QRC) concept.

“Successfully steered the implementation of a unique and innovative outsource model in the telecoms space for Airtel Malawi in its network, call centre and IT departments while at the same time ensuring there was minimal or no disruption in the business operations.

Previous experience (1995-2006) included being deputy sales & marketing manager for Southern Bottlers Malawi Limited (2002–2006) — holding accountability for sales, marketing and general staff welfare issues within the department which was charged with the responsibility of growing the business within the country.

After been sidelined by Mutharika’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Chilima later left the party to form the United Transformation Movement (UTM), and contested in the nullified 2019 general election and went on to become President Lazarus Chakwera as running mate.

Same plane that carried late Ralph Kasambara

In his eulogy of Chilima today as he officially announcing the tragedy that has befallen the nation, Chakwera said his deputy “was a good man, a devoted father and husband, a patriotic citizen who served his country with distinction, and a formidable Vice-President.

“I consider it one of the greatest honours of my life to have had him as my deputy and counsellor for the past four years,” he said of the man he entrusted to represent him at the Korea-Africa summit which was held on June 4 and 5 in Seoul, Republic of Korea — where he returned just on Sunday June 9.

Previously, Chilima served as Minister for Disaster Relief & Public Events and was also a member of the Leadership Council of Compact 2025, a partnership that develops and disseminates evidence-based advice to politicians and other decision-makers aimed at ending hunger and undernutrition by 2025.

He wrote on the topic of malnutrition and also spoke on sustainable and inclusive development at international conferences on ending hunger.

Chilima voiced his advocacy of environmentalism and of physical fitness and sports participation, as well as being a stern critic of corruption in politics.

He is survived by his wife Mary (née Chibambo) and two children, Sean and Elizabeth.—Info from Wikipedia & Government website

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