In the exercise of its mandate conferred by the Malawi Government under the Science and Technology Act, No. 16 of 2003; Gazette Supplement Notice No.1 of 20th February, 2009, the Board of Directors of the National Commission for Science and Technology (NCST) appointed Mrs. Gift Kadzamira as its 4th Director General (DG) with effect from 18th September, 2023.
As Director General, her vision is to unlock the potential of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) for a knowledge-based society through the strengthening of the National Innovation system and its governance system among others. Gift is a seasoned STI player having been in the industry for over 20 years, 12 years of which have been spent at NCST.
She has knowledge and skills in research and innovation management and holds an MSc Degree in Electronic Information Management from the Robert Gordon University; Scotland, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from the University of Malawi. She also has professional qualifications such as a Postgraduate Diploma in an African Leadership Course in ICT (ALICT) aimed at advancing the knowledge society development across ministries and organizations; Research Management; Intellectual Property Rights; Gender in STI; Technology Transfer and commercialization from the University of Witwatersrand and the Southern African Research and Innovation Association (SARIMA); Science Diplomacy from AAAS and TWAS; Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship in Africa Certificate from the Harvard Kennedy School and also the Transformational Innovation, Transformation, and Resilience for Sustainable Development Certificate from Lund University in Sweden.