You ask how I feel to be the first female president in southern Africa? It's heavy for me. Heavy in the sense that I feel that I'm carrying this heavy load on behalf of all women.
Joyce BandaRead
When I gave birth to my fourth child, I suffered from post partum hemorrhaging. I almost lost my life. I was lucky to be under the care of trained health care personnel. I started wondering then what was happening to women in rural villages.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the dangers women face during childbirth, especially in rural areas with limited medical care.
Joyce Banda reflects on her personal experience of severe complications after giving birth to her fourth child, which led her to question the safety and health conditions for women in rural villages. This experience brought to her attention the disparities in healthcare access and the urgent need for attention to maternal health issues globally.
Themes
ChildbirthHealthcareMaternal HealthRural WomenPostpartum
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech on women's health rights, this quote could be used to emphasize the need for better maternal care.
More from Joyce Banda
All quotes →I sat down in 1989 and I made up my mind at that point that I was going to spend the rest of my life assisting women and youth to gain social and political empowerment through business and education. I convinced myself economic empowerment of women was going to be key, especially in a country like this where most women didn't go to school.
Joyce BandaRead
I convinced myself economic empowerment of women was going to be key, especially in a country like this where most women didn't go to school.
Joyce BandaRead
My father once told me when I was a young girl that I was destined to do great things. His belief in my abilities and ambition is rooted deeply in the spirit of Malawians; resilient and determined for a better Malawi and a better Africa.
Joyce BandaRead
An African woman carries heavy loads anyway. That's how we are trained; we are brought up that nothing is unbearable. I use that now, positively. I use that now to have the thick skin that I have, and not fear, and move forward, and push; and push forward.
Joyce BandaRead
It is only when a woman is economically empowered that she can negotiate at household level with her husband about the number of children that body of hers can have.
Joyce BandaRead
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