Before sunrise, when the lakeshore air is still cool
enough to keep the morning catch from spoiling, Anusah Banda of Kamange Village
in the area of Traditional Authority Malengachanzi in Nkhotakota District is
already preparing for the day's business.
Like many fish sellers in the area, she sets out early
to buy fish. But her journey into business began from a much more difficult
place.
Two years ago, Anusah left an abusive marriage with a
bag of clothes, two children and no source of income of her own.
She says her husband had spent years telling her that a
woman was meant to obey her man and should not venture into work or business.
Anusah is among women who have walked away from abusive
marriages and turned to small-scale businesses as a way of rebuilding their
lives.
Statistics provided by Nkhotakota District Police Public
Relations Officer Chisomo Chuma show that the number of women reporting abuse
by their husbands has remained almost the same over the past two years.
Chuma says the Victim Support Unit recorded more than
100 women in 2024, and the figure remained above 100 in 2025.
For Anusah, leaving the marriage meant starting again.
In October 2024, she ventured into the trading of dried
fish and rice. She started small, procuring dried fish on credit from a supplier
at the lakeshore and reselling it in bundles by the roadside.
“Some people doubted my capability in running a
business. It was not an easy road, but with time, people have now seen the
fruits of hard work,” recalls Anusah.
What started as a small business has since grown. Anusah
now supplies dried fish and rice to buyers at Kalimanjiira and Mwala Watongole
trading centres in Nkhotakota.
The business has also created employment for ten people.
But for Anusah, the transformation is not only about
money.
She has also found a voice in community decision-making.
Anusah now attends Kamange Village meetings, where she
says women are increasingly finding space to speak about issues affecting them
and advocate for their empowerment.
She says this was not always the case, as men previously
dominated decision-making in her community.
“I realized having money was not enough if I still had
no voice. A woman can run a business while simultaneously holding positions of
power in our societies, just like male counterparts,” asserts Anusah.
She was elected to the Village Development Committee
alongside two other women, joining what had largely been a male-dominated
committee.
She is now pushing the committee to consider expanding
into vegetable farming on a larger piece of land as another source of income
for the community.
Group Village Head Kamange, who has witnessed Anusah's
growth in both business and community leadership, says her progress has helped
change perceptions about women's leadership.
For Memory Labana, an associate of Anusah, her friend's
journey has also been a lesson in starting again.
Labana says she once believed that marriage was the only
path available to a woman.
But watching Anusah rebuild her life taught her that a
woman's worth does not depend on her marital status.
“What started as
a small seed has now grown and shown good fruits in this society,” says Labana.
“When she became a single mother, everyone laughed at her. Her work is fruitful
now.”
Anusah now mentors three younger women in nearby
villages who are facing challenges in abusive marriages.
She believes access to resources, particularly
affordable loans, could help such women rebuild their lives through business.
She is also lobbying, together with other women leaders
in the district, for a savings and loan scheme that would give rural women access
to small business capital without the collateral requirements that keep many of
them outside the formal banking system.
“I am not special,” Anusah says when asked whether she
would encourage other women facing similar circumstances to take the path she
took.
“I was simply tired of being dictated to. Every woman
reaches that point. The difference is whether she has somewhere to put that
anger to work.”
Anusah's experience reflects the importance of economic
opportunities for women seeking to rebuild their lives.
Umunthu Plus, an organisation that works on women's
rights, has programmes aimed at helping women become financially self-reliant
by moving from limited productive assets to businesses and other
income-generating activities.
The organisation's Programme Manager, Promise Msampha,
commends Anusah for turning a difficult experience into an opportunity to
rebuild her life and support others.
Msampha says Anusah's story is similar to the
experiences of other women who have benefited from the organisation's Njira
Limodzi project, which provides goats to beneficiaries as productive assets.
She says the project has helped improve the welfare of
underprivileged women, including some who have experienced different forms of
abuse, by giving them an opportunity to generate income and support their
families.
Anusah believes that women who receive financial support
should also be equipped with business knowledge.
She says this would help them manage and sustain their
businesses while adapting to changing trends in trade.
