When I first entered the corridors of diplomacy, I quickly learned that the greatest challenges are often not the ones written in official briefs, but the ones unspoken – the silences that shape decisions, the expectations that press down invisibly, and the subtle ways women are told how far they can go.
Reading Feminine Silence, I felt those silences come alive on the page. Nthanda Manduwi captures what so many women across Africa and the world quietly endure: the weight of carrying communities while being told to take up less space, the demand to be both strong and soft, and the impossible task of navigating power without appearing “too much.” Her words remind us that even after decades of progress, women are still asked to walk on glass shells, careful not to shatter the fragile balance of a world not built for their full presence.
As an African diplomat, I have seen firsthand how gendered expectations play out in policy rooms, negotiations, and development agendas. Too often, women are invited to the table, but not fully heard. Too often, men are left out of the conversation about equity, when in fact they must be central to it. Feminine Silence refuses to accept this as the norm. It calls for partnership – real, meaningful partnership – where men and women walk together, not in competition, but in co-creation of a just society.
What strikes me most about this book is that it is not a lament. It is a vision. Nthanda, leveraging her experience and her pains navigating diplomatic corridors dares to imagine a future where success does not demand silence, where equity is not charity but justice, and where young women and men grow up knowing that leadership has no gendered script.
In my years of service, I have always believed that Africa’s greatest resource is its people – and among them, its women. But resources must be nurtured, not exploited. Voices must be amplified, not muted. Futures must be built together. That is the invitation this book extends to all of us.
If you are holding Feminine Silence in your hands, know that you are holding more than a book. You are holding a torch. It illuminates not just what is wrong, but what is possible. It is a mirror for the silences we must confront, and a map toward a world where no one – woman or man – is asked to dim their light to belong.
I am proud that this voice, this vision, comes from a Malawian woman. And I am certain that it will resonate far beyond our borders.
As we continue the work of building a more just and equal world, may these words inspire us to listen more deeply, act more boldly, and believe more fiercely in what equity can look like – when silence is no longer the cost of survival.
H.E. Ambassador Agnes Mary Chimbiri-Molande
Permanent Representative of the Republic of Malawi to the United Nations
New York, United States
