Tapiwa Mari

Tapiwa Mari was born on 17 May 1989.  He attended Mazowe High School for O’ Levels then St Ignatius College for his A ‘Levels. He has worked at Junior Achievement Zimbabwe where he was Programmes Assistant and has also had a brief stint at Barclays Bank of Zimbabwe and HIFA. Mari is one of the two founding trustees of the Young Leaders Forum and the current Chairperson of the Board of Trustees.

Mari is a renowned debater who has successfully participated in the Nugget National Schools Debate Competition and also the National Universities Debate League. He has also represented Zimbabwe and Africa at the Stetson Annual International Environmental Law Moot Court Competition in Maryland, USA. In this competition the team won the famed Spirit of Stetson Award for dedication.  Tapiwa Mari is currently studying Law at the University of Zimbabwe where he is in his final year.

He has shown an active interest in student’s academic development and the building of their capacity. He has also written various articles and opinions in International Law, Intellectual Property Law, Constitutional Law and Youth Development. Mari has said that of all the issues of youth development the one he has a passion for the most is ensuring that Zimbabwean youths are internationally competitive in their area of expertise.

Mari’s vision is to see a visionary youth with the necessary capacity, knowledge and network to participate in a future economy. He has said of Young Leaders Forum, ‘this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a coalition of young people, academics, sportsman, artistes- all young determined to be the brains that will change the world.’