The Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Mzuzu University wishes to congratulate its 2023 Old Mutual Mathematics Olympiad finalists and semi-finalists for their very exceptional performance in the just released Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) examinations. Three of the students have each scored an aggregate of 6 points including 1’s in mathematics. These are Don Chikopa and Joseph Mathias Katole, both from Dedza Secondary School and Esnart Chiwala of St Mary’s Secondary School. The public may recall that Don Chikopa was also the overall winner of the 2023 Old Mutual Mathematics Olympiad. Joseph Mathias Katole and Esnart Chiwala were both semi-finalists in the competition. The third best student in the competition, Benjamin Soko of Marist Secondary School, scored an aggregate of 7 points and a 1 in mathematics. Special mention is also given to female finalists for their exceptional performances at the MSCE level. These include Rejoice Banda of Marymount Secondary School and Malaika Mkamanga of St Mary’s Secondary School. They aggregated 10 points each with a 1 in mathematics. Blandina Chabuka of St Mary’s Karonga Girls Secondary School scored 13 points with a 1 in mathematics. Melinda Maweru of St Patrick’s International High School scored an A* in her IGCSE mathematics and she is now an A-Level student. The public may also wish to note that all finalists in the competition have scored distinctions in mathematics. The Old Mutual Mathematics Olympiads have been held annually since 2015 by the Department of Mathematics and Statistics with support from Old Mutual Malawi. They aim at identifying and nurturing mathematics talent among students from schools across the country and encouraging them to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). This is a crucial component of human capital development as outlined in the Malawi Vision 2063 and the Malawi 2063 First 10-year Implementation Plan (MIP-1). The competitions target students in Form Four or equivalent classes from schools across the country. Dates for the next edition of the competition will be announced in due course.  

Dr Nephtale Mumba Head of Department