National Bank of Malawi (NBM) plc has thrown its financial weight behind a major reunion for one of the country's most respected universities, pledging a K4 million sponsorship to support the upcoming LUANAR Alumni Connect initiative. The symbolic cheque handover took place at NBM's headquarters in Lilongwe, with the flagship gathering itself set to take [...]
Nyasa Times News Desk
Nyasa Times Reporter
22 Sept 2026 · 2 min read
National Bank of Malawi (NBM) plc has thrown its financial weight behind a major reunion for one of the country's most respected universities, pledging a K4 million sponsorship to support the upcoming LUANAR Alumni Connect initiative.
The symbolic cheque handover took place at NBM's headquarters in Lilongwe, with the flagship gathering itself set to take place at the Botanic Gardens in Lilongwe on 28 September 2026.
Speaking at the ceremony, NBM Corporate Banking Senior Manager Shadrack Malenga said the bank was proud to throw its support behind the initiative, framing it as part of a much wider commitment to boosting education and development across Malawi.
"As National Bank, whenever we have professionals meeting like that, we always seek to encourage such gatherings because they tend to be hubs for innovations where various good initiatives can diffuse into the wider economy and the population at large," Malenga said.
Accepting the donation on behalf of the university, LUANAR Deputy Vice-Chancellor Associate Professor Agness Mwagwela praised the bank's generosity, saying the gesture had given fresh momentum to the institution's broader vision.
LUANAR — the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources — traces its roots back to 1964, when the government established Bunda College of Agriculture to train Malawian nationals in agriculture at a time when most such roles were still held by expatriates.
Bunda went on to become a constituent college of the University of Malawi, before being transformed into a fully-fledged university in 2011 through an Act of Parliament, merging with the Natural Resources College to officially become LUANAR in 2012.
Today, the university stands as one of Malawi's leading centres for agricultural and natural resources education, boasting faculties spanning agriculture, natural resources, development studies and food and human sciences, alongside a student body of several thousand and a growing network of alumni now working across government, private industry and academia both in Malawi and abroad.
Alumni gatherings of this kind have increasingly become a platform for former graduates to reconnect, share expertise and forge partnerships aimed at driving innovation back into Malawi's wider economy.
GPGrace Phiri
2h agoFinally some clarity on this. Thanks for the detailed breakdown.
JBJames Banda
1h agoI hope the authorities actually follow through this time.
Malawi's fuel crisis has sent bus fares through the roof — leaving skint commuters hitching lifts on the back of pickup trucks just to get to work. Fares have DOUBLED on some routes almost overnight, with passengers from Area 25 to Lilongwe's Old Town now stung for K6,000, up from K4,000. It's even worse heading [...]
There is a kind of honesty that only arrives once denial has become impossible, and Malawi's health system produced two versions of it in the space of a single news cycle this week. At Kamuzu Central Hospital, it took the form of a number: nearly 5,000 people now waiting for surgery, a queue grown so [...]
Standard Bank Malawi has thrown a lifeline to league leaders Blue Eagles FC, unveiling a blockbuster K250 million sponsorship deal in a glittering ceremony at the Malawi Police Service Headquarters in Lilongwe. The timing could hardly have been sweeter for the Eagles, who were handed the eye-watering cheque just as they sit proudly at the [...]
The Ministry of Natural Resources and the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources have signed a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at strengthening and institutionalising collaboration between the two institutions. The signing ceremony took place on Monday at the Ministry's headquarters at Capital Hill in Lilongwe. Minister of Natural Resources Patricia Wiskes said the MoU [...]