Inaugural BTG Trailblazers Mentors & Mentees Bootcamp in Malawi – a Resounding Success
Photo credit: Thandiwe Chilumanga
Lilongwe, Malawi | June 2026
From 1 to 5 June 2026, the Be That Girl Trailblazers Scholarship Programme successfully held its first-ever Mentors & Mentees Boot Camp in Lilongwe, marking a significant milestone in the journey of its pioneering cohort of 10 young women studying STEM at the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST).
The five-day residential boot camp brought together the 10 scholars and their 10 dedicated mentors from the Rotary Club of Lilongwe Lotus (RCLL) for mentorship, personal development, and community building. The event featured inspiring mentorship sessions, interactive group discussions, workplace learning visits, and powerful peer-to-peer bonding moments.
Highlights of the Boot Camp included:
Face-to-face meetings that strengthened mentor-mentee relationships
Mentor-led sessions on critical topics such as Problem-Solving, Entrepreneurship, Leadership Sexual and Reproductive Health, Communication , and Resilience
Professional workplace exposure visits that broadened the scholars’ horizons
Reflection sessions that allowed scholars to actively contribute to shaping the future of the programme
Both mentors and scholars described the experience as transformative. The bootcamp not only equipped the young women with practical life skills and career insights but also fostered a strong, supportive community of Trailblazers committed to lifting one another up.
The success of this inaugural bootcamp reinforces the power of the holistic support offered through the BTG Trailblazers Scholarship combining academic funding, quality mentorship, tutoring support, and real-world exposure to develop the next generation of confident, capable, and compassionate women leaders in Malawi.
We extend our deepest gratitude to all the mentors who generously gave their time and wisdom, and to our partners at MUST and RCLL for making this milestone possible.
The future is bright for the Trailblazers. We look forward to welcoming Cohort 2 and continuing this impactful journey together.
Here you can read students’ testimonials:
“The BTG bootcamp gave me more than skills...it boosted my confidence, it helped to grow...” Eliness Sinkhonde
“I was super excited since in my life I have never learnt the things I learnt at the bootcamp This has made me realize that there is a lot more out there and this will influence me to work harder so that one day it should be me inspiring young girls and ladies” Memory Soko
“We learnt so much from all the mentors who came together to inspire us and we are really grateful and we may not use all this knowledge today, but rest assured that it will transform our lives” Isabel Chindimba
“One thing I have admired in all the women whom we have interacted with during this time is that they all have leadership in them. The way they carry themselves, they are all so confident and I look at them and realise the burning desire in me to be like them one day, and this has already started happening because before this scholarship, we were all shy and lacked confidence, but now with all these lessons, we can all feel the transformation” Pauline Chibwana
“The scholarship and bootcamp have been a life-changing opportunity for me. They have given me knowledge, practical skills, and confidence to pursue my academic and career goals. I am grateful for the support and guidance provided, and I look forward to applying what I have learned to make a positive impact in my community” Mary Lewa