Cynthia Phiri - Malawi

Cynthia is the second born among her siblings. Her mother is a secondary school teacher, and her father is a land surveyor. Like her father, Cynthia also studied land surveying at the University of Malawi's Polytechnic. After that, she interned at Lilongwe city council as a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) assistant and is currently working at Malawi Surveys as a land surveyor. Her interest in innovations started when she was in university.

"As land surveyors, we collect a lot of data. This is challenging and time-consuming when we're working in a crowded place with obstructions. It has always been an interest of mine to find ways to address these issues through drones Because achieving accuracy is important in land surveying," says Cynthia.

She joined ADDA after seeing the flyer on Facebook. She applied and was accepted. "We are learning how to build drones, and we will also learn about GIS, which is my area of expertise. We'll know how to analyze drone data. I am excited," a cheerful Cynthia explains. After graduating, she wants to apply her knowledge to the work she's doing at her workplace, the Lilongwe native trusts. "I am also interested in water and sanitation, a sector with many challenges. Perhaps with drones, I'll be able to address some of the problems in these areas," she says. Cynthia also thinks being a woman in the innovation field will make her stand out since the sector is filled with men.