As a Christian and one who understands the word of God, he prizes genuineness and thoughtful conversation above all negativity. Coming from a humble background, Dr. Mwelwa’s rise from the dungeons of hopelessness demonstrates one’s hard work and determination to change things for the better.
His ascendance to the position of Vice Chancellor for Chreso University came at a time when many of his peers thought the time for reinventing himself had long gone.
Raised by his grandmother in a village called Fitete in Chief Chitina in Mkushi District of the Republic of Zambia, young Lawrence Mwelwa believed that education was the only key to his success in life. Having failed Grade Seven examinations twice, he decided to study through distance learning called correspondence in those days.
Through distance learning he later passed to secure secondary school education. Determined to better his life, he decided to leave Mkushi for the city of Lusaka, where he settled in a down-trodden compound of Misisi.
Before the doors to success opened for him, Dr Mwelwa did odd jobs, including that of a security guard at Shoprite head office at Manda Hill in Lusaka.
Unfazed by the challenges of life, he exhibited leadership qualities and management skills, which saw him rise through the ranks to become one of the supervisors overseeing security operations at the departmental store.
Unfazed by the challenges of life, he exhibited leadership qualities and management skills, which saw him rise through the ranks to become one of the supervisors overseeing security operations at the departmental store.
Dr. Mwelwa’s success story did not end at Shoprite, for he later became the director of a construction company called Funbuild Services Limited, and contributed to national development through construction and building.
Coincidentally, Chreso Ministries run by Reverend Helmut Reuter, is one of the organizations that engaged Funbuild to construct some of its buildings. It was during Dr. Mwelwa’s interaction with Chreso Ministries that Reverend Reutter and his team noticed the exceptional and rare leadership qualities in him.
It did not take long for the Executive Director of Chreso Ministries Rev. Helmut Reutter to engage Dr. Mwelwa as one of the members of staff at the institution. He later quit Funbuild and immediately became Reverend Reuter’s personal assistant, handling strategic duties in the entire Chreso Ministries.
He was later appointed to become Director - Human Resource, and eventually became Vice Chancellor of Chreso University.
When Dr. Mwelwa became Vice-Chancellor of Chreso University, the institution was grappling with a lot of operational challenges. The university had 35 students. But Dr Mwelwa worked hard to make the intuition become one of the recognised private universities in Zambia.
When Dr. Mwelwa became Vice-Chancellor of Chreso University, the institution was grappling with a lot of operational challenges. The university had 35 students. But Dr Mwelwa worked hard to make the intuition become one of the recognised private universities in Zambia.
Under the leadership of Dr. Mwelwa, Chreso University had enrolled over 3700 students from a paltry 35. The university has become one of the preferred learning institutions for those who want to progress from secondary to higher learning education.
Dr Mwelwa has proved to be an excellent team builder, with exceptional abilities to identify the right people for particular tasks, setting the right platform for them to operate and yield expected results.
Having studied theology before joining Chreso Ministries, Dr. Mwelwa has used principles of scripture to impart Christian values in his team.
Behind Dr. Mwelwa’s success is his wife Mrs. Given Katuta Mwelwa, who is Chienge Member of Parliament. Together they have forged a bond to ensure service delivery in Chienge constituency and other communities. The wife is equally a charismatic leader with a passion for the development of her village.
Dr Mwelwa had a conviction during the August 11, 2016 tripartite elections that his wife Given was going to win the parliamentary seat. One of his workmates, Mr. Njobvu recalls that during political campaigns Dr Mwelwa declared that he would come back to Lusaka with an MP for Chienge.
He strongly believes in the creative power of the spoken word. Indeed, his belief came to pass when his wife Given emerged victorious as Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) member of Parliament for Chienge.
“I recall Dr. Mwelwa’s last statement before embarking on his last campaign trip, he looked straight in my face and declared, Mr. Njobvu, my ‘Nduna’ I am going to Chienge leaving you in charge of everything, and I will come back with a member of Parliament. Having known and worked with Dr Mwelwa for some time, I realised he was serious about it. As predicted, Given won the Chienge seat,” Mr. Njobvu said.
Dr Mwelwa’s biggest dream is to offer himself for service to the people. Like most community leaders, Dr. Mwelwa pays a lot of attention to the well-being of people. One of his plans is to empower youths in rural communities with skills to better their lives and society at large.
He cares about youth empowerment because, as a boy growing up in Mkushi he faced many challenges in bettering his life without the support from his estranged father.
To Dr Mwelwa, the sky is the limit in his ambition to change people’s lives in society.
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