ABOUT US
WACRAD

About DLGF
The Dynamic Leaders and Gatekeepers Forum (DLGF) is an all-sector network of influential Christian Executives and Societal Leaders. Its agenda is driven by issues affecting society that are identified through seven gates which cover every aspect of life and socioeconomic development, and these are: (i) Church; (ii) Government; (iii) Business and Economics; (iv) Health, Science and Technology; (v) Family and Education; (vi) Sports, Arts and Entertainment; and (vii) Media and Communication.
DLGF business is organised and conducted in a structured yet highly participatory format that combines presentations, discussions and practical interactive sessions. DLGF was founded in 2015 by Reverend Dr. Zacc Kawalala who serves as its Executive Chairman. Reverend Dr. Kawalala is based in Blantyre, Malawi and is also the General Overseer of Word Alive Ministries International besides other portfolios he holds.
Our Vision
A transformed and prosperous nation under the watch of faithful and vigilant gatekeepers and dynamic leaders.
Our Mission
To provide a multidimensional support system for dynamic leaders and gate keepers by equipping them with tools that enable them to watch over the nation leading to positive and transformative change.
Our Values
- Responsiveness
- Integrity
- Faithfulness
- Passion
- Patriotism
- Progression
- Vigilance
OVERARCHING GOAL
OVERARCHING GOAL
Improved quality of gatekeeping and dynamic leadership through a robust, multidimensional support system.
OUR OBJECTIVES
– To improve participation of gatekeepers and dynamic leaders in DLGF programmes, initiatives and activities for their empowerment and impact in the market place.– To enhance the capacity of dynamic leaders and gatekeepers in the seven gates of influence in Malawi.
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THE GATES
CHURCH GATEThe role of the church cuts across every gate and the nation at large. With statics indicating that 80% of the Malawi population are Christians, it is therefore true that it is these same people that are spread across the 7 gates. Generally, society acknowledges that the church plays a pivotal role in addressing the challenges facing the citizenry. As such, the church’s influence in shaping the destiny of a nation cannot be overemphasised and must therefore extend beyond the four walls of the church and private space to the marketplace.
Malawi 2063 (MW2063), acknowledges the role of religious institutions in mindset change; shared mandate and values, including unity, hard work, integrity, patriotism, and equity. Religion and the Church in particular, promote culture and traditions that bind us together, promote and preserve cultural values that are aligned to the word of God and encourage hard work.
THE GOVERNMENT GATE
This gate encompasses the three main arms of Government: the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary. Although the Non-Governmental Organisations do not form part of the government, they are a vital component in governance.
The Government Gate continues to be associated with poor governance and reluctance in formulation and enforcement of good laws and policies. The Gate is also associated with a lack of; citizen responsiveness, effectiveness and efficiency, ethical conduct, competency, innovation and openness to change, sound financial and economic management, sustainable peace and security.
All these are enablers that have been highlighted in the MW2063.
THE FAMILY AND EDUCATION GATE
The Family is the primary unit of humanity and primary agent of education where children and youth are supposed to be raised and enabled to grow into exemplary men and women who are productive citizens of the nation. The Family Gate acknowledges the role of education in shaping the future of a nation. The Gate agrees with government’s commitment for provision of relevant quality education including early Child Development (ECD) for every child; compulsory attainment of 12 years of formal education; well-equipped and staffed primary and secondary schools and research-based innovations and job creations.
The gate seeks to ensure that the education system not only provides such kind of academic excellence but also creates a transfer of values that will uphold the dignity of the human life from the family unit and throughout the education system. In addition, the gate advocates for fairness and equity in resource distribution and adoption of culturally relevant and ethical and morally correct behaviours and norms.
THE MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION GATE
For many years now, globally, the media has assumed and reinforced its important role as a legitimate reflection of public interest and opinion. One critical role the media play is facilitating access to information, transparency and accountability which are critical to good governance. The digitisation of the media has brought both good and bad. The good, by providing increased ease of access to various social media platforms and online publishing.
The bad is the proliferation of misinformation and the legitimisation of fake news. The Media Gate would like to support efforts to sustain a professional media in order to continue to reinforce its place and position in society and governance structure as the fourth estate.
THE SPORTS, ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT GATE.
This is an ever-growing gate in size and popularity
because it caters for both physical and mental development, including arts and entertainment. The gate attracts all ethnic and demographic groups but mostly the youth and young adults. Though underdeveloped nationwide, Sports, Arts and Entertainment has the potential to not only boost the economy of the country but to also provide much needed income earning avenues for many agile and creative youth. Persons pursuing art can find career opportunities in areas such as museum curation, animation, illustration, graphic design, and more; Sports has the potential to benefit other sectors including health and education while allowing persons to delve into active sports or sports administration and management; while Entertainment has diverse products and services which can be used to educate masses and promote the culture of the country.
THE BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS GATE
The Business Gate supports the developmental vision of the country in helping solve various challenges of the Malawi economy which is largely anchored on agriculture. The Gate seeks to foster efforts in the areas of good governance, covering public finance management and driving the adherence to integrity and ethics in the market place.
It also strives to foster and encourage economic investments in areas that remain wanting such as investments in various developments covering public infrastructure such as transportation, ICT, value addition and manufacturing initiatives in agriculture products, and consumable goods and services in a bid to increase gross domestic product and stabilisation of key fundamentals such as depressed economic growth, rising inflation, currency depreciation, a widening fiscal deficit and rising debt levels.
THE HEALTH SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY GATE
The Gate supports the country’s vision of a healthy population with improved life expectancy. This highlights the provision of a comprehensive health care system through interventions that will address shortfalls in the recruitment, distribution and retention of health workers, strengthening reproductive; maternal, neonatal, child and adolescent health, improving the availability and quality of health infrastructure, medical equipment, medicines and medical supplies, and exploring innovative and sustainable financing measures such as strengthening governance etc. Unfortunately, the Gate is one of the most abused and deeply affected by fraud and equipment and drug theft, hence the need for stepping up surveillance and flagging of issues by the Gate.
DLGF has been hosting forums annually since 2016 and has hosted notable figures locally and internationally including the current Chief Justice Rizine Mzikamanda, Justice Chifundo Kachale, Professor Address Malata, Former South African Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng among others. DLGF will be having one this year on a date to be announced after the initial date (21st June 2024) was rescheduled to pave way for a mourning period after the death of the Vice President, Late Rt. Honourable Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima.
The speakers for this year’s DLGF are host Reverend Dr. Zacc Kawalala who is Executive Chairman of DLGF, Professor Asiyati Chiweza from Malawi School of Government and His Excellency Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera as a keynote speaker.


History
The history of Word Alive Ministries International dates back to early 1980’s with Rev Barbara Tippet who introduced a fellowship in her home after being miraculously healed of spinal complications in Johannesburg, South Africa.
What had happened is that Rev Barbara Tippet was staying in the commercial city of Malawi, Blantyre with her husband, Brian Tippet who was working as an accountant with one of the leading companies. But at 28 years of age, Rev Barbara had undergone three major spinal operations and she lived in a body plaster cast, used a walking stick and lived on strong pain killers.
In 1980, she resolved to travel to South Africa for yet another operation. Whilst in South Africa, her friend, Amanda Giles took her to Pastor Me Cauley who prayed for her. It was at this
moment that she confessed Jesus Christ as her Lord and saviour and also got her complete healing.
Returning to Malawi, Rev Barbara Tippet did not just sit back but wanted to preach Jesus Christ who miraculously healed her. She began a fellowship in her home which later grew very big in number to an extent that a hall was rented for the meetings. This time various churches in town began forbidding their congregations to attend these fellowship meetings which included Lunch hour services, Bible study meetings and Mid-week services.
In 1985, her fellowship moved into larger premises, near Bombay Bazaar in Blantyre where a Bookshop was also introduced. This time the fellowship was called Mustard Seed Center and people like Fouzia Wilson, South African by origin but currently living in Malawi, Joyce Rix and Sheila Gilmore, both Malawians by origin played a vital role in laying the foundations of the fellowship. In a twist of events, when the fellowship grew and started to affect many souls, the government of that day shut it down because it was operating without legal documents. At this moment members of the fellowship prayed diligently up until 8th July 1987 when the government finally registered the fellowship as a church under the name “Blantyre Christian Center.”
Over the past years of the Church’s existence, different people of different tribes, colour, have come in and been part of the leadership.
Pastor Barbara Tipett, who is the founder, provided oversight of the ministry from its inception up to April 1995 when she sensed a call to move on. At the time Rev Barbara left for USA, Elders Mr Felix Sakyi and Mr Kamuzu Chibambo ably led the church until 1997 when Reverend Jim Lapka from Canada took over as Senior Pastor of the church.
Rev. Lapka served the Ministry up to March 2002 when he felt the need to move on. From April 2002 Pastor Zacc Kawalala providing oversight to the church, while it was still known as Blantyre Christian Centre. It was at this time that the vision to plant churches beyond Blantyre was birthed. Since the revisiting of the vision, the ministry has also changed its governance structure to fit the current direction.
Currently the ministry has an Executive Council as the highest governing board. The council is supported by Technical Advisory Boards.

Executive Council
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Executive Leadership
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