Written by Steve Nhlane (Presidential Press Officer)

According to twitter analytics tool, Tweetreach, tweets which contained the hashtag ‪#‎joycebanda‬ alone gained over 1,649,702 impressions or opportunities to see during the State President’s speech at Nelson Mandela’s State Funeral on Saturday in Qunu. More than 2 million people were directly involved in the conversation about the President and there would have been many other people who would have shared it.

The hashtag #joycebanda also trended on Twitter during her speech.

After her address, the President received a standing ovation from the crowd, which consisted of many Heads of State and Goverment and global celebrities. Many members of the audience were visibly moved by the President’s words about “her Madiba.”

Social media network, Twitter also exploded with numerous tweets reflecting the positive sentiment that the President stirred in her speech. Some tweets even saying that the President’s speech was on a par with President Barrack Obama’s address.

Prominent personalities who tweeted #Joycebanda were people like Radio and TV star Dineo Ranaka and TV programmes such as Carte Blanche and activist accounts such as LeadSA.

With Twitter reaching a global audience, the discussion generated will have done a huge amount to restore confidence in Malawi by the population of those countries who support the country with donor aid.

During her speech the President noted how Mandela served as her role model especially during difficult times in her political career, referring to him as “My Madiba.” She also talked about her leadership philosophy. Twitter followers responded passionately by quoting parts of her speech and commenting positively on her leadership style.