Wazakili, Margaret

Dr Margaret Wazakili is the Director of the MagWaz Physiotherapy, Disability and Wellness Services in Lilongwe. She conducts disability consultancies, following successful completion of a two-year Fellowship on Disability and Public Policy, as the first International Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation Fellow in Africa. Dr Wazakili obtained her PhD at the University of the Western Cape, focusing on disability, sexuality and HIV/AIDS among young people with physical disabilities and a three-year Post-Doctoral Fellowship on the African Policy on Disability and Development with Centre for Rehabilitation Studies at Stellenbosch University. Here, she investigated the inclusion of disability in Poverty Reduction Strategies. Dr Wazakili has published in accredited journals and presented at a number of local and international conferences, including WCPT in Canada, 2007, winning an award for outstanding presentation. She has received research grants for evaluation of Special Olympics Healthy Communities, Cerebral Palsy Africa, Girl effect and Accessibility of Courts for persons with disabilities. Currently, she is evaluating a security project for persons with Albinism in Malawi, commissioned by Disabled Women in Africa. In addition to being a reviewer of some accredited Disability-related Journals, Dr Wazakili has reviewed abstracts for WCPT thrice, including the 2017 session.