A young girl from Lusaka, Zambia named Mwangala Maunga has been recognized for her innovative solution to improve the lives of her community. At the age of 12, Mwangala invented a solar-powered water purifier to provide clean drinking water to both urban and rural areas in her country.
Inspired by the prevalence of waterborne diseases, Mwangala used a combination of materials including wood and metal sheet enclosures, black paint for insulation, heat-absorbent black trays, reflective materials, sheets of glass, glue and catch troughs to build the water purifier prototype.
Mwangala’s solar water purifier is easy to use; one only needs to put water in it and place it in the sun. Her idea came at a crucial time, closely following the declaration of a cholera outbreak in Zambia in 2017. Mwangala’s goal was to provide clean and safe water in the simplest way possible, rather than relying on a complicated water purification system. She nursed the idea for the solar water filter while in Grade 5, but only actualized it when she was in Grade 8.
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In recognition of her achievement, Mwangala has received numerous awards, including the best inventor in the Science and Technology category at the DStv Africa MultiChoice – Cartoon Network Powerpuff Girls’ Awards in 2018. In 2019, she became the youngest recipient of the Brenda Muntemba Award for Emerging Young African Leaders at the PUSH WOMEN AWARDS.
She was also the youngest and only Zambian speaker at the Virtual International Youth Day in August 2020 and was awarded an SDG badge of honor, courage, and bravery for her work in the fight against cyberbullying by the UNDP Country Resident Representative in December 2020. In December 2021, she was named the Youngest STEM Change Maker at the Genius Education Zambia Awards.
Now 17 years old, Mwangala remains passionate about Science and Technology and continues to seek avenues to ensure the girl child is not disadvantaged. In 2021, she founded an organization called Girl Power Platform to empower young girls.