Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani’s dedication towards the welfare and development of Zambia and its people is well-known. This dedication is seen in the form of several top environmental, charitable and philanthropic activities. Since his early business successes, Dr. Rajan Mahtani has been an active philanthropist with numerous contributions to businesses and sector. At the same time, these contributions are mostly hidden from the media and the public as Dr. Mahtani hardly promotes his philanthropic contributions. Recently, the Steven Malama award was given for the year 2018-19. This award is given every year to the top graduating student from the Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education for topping the course as well as getting selected for bar in their first attempt. Not many people know that this award was instituted in the year 2012 by Dr. Rajan Mahtani himself, in collaboration with Finance Bank Zambia where he holds the position of the Chairman.
Late Steven Malama was a good friend of Dr. Rajan Mahtani and was described as a distinct and honest legal professional who dedicated his life for developing the legal framework of Zambia. Late Steven Malama along with his fellow colleagues was instrumental in persuading the Zambian Government to merge the Barrister’s Bar and the Solicitor’s Bar into a single bar so that legal professionals and graduates will be able to get easy affiliation. He is also responsible for several other improvements in the legal administrative framework of Zambia with networking and legislative persuasion. Dr. Rajan Mahtani decided that the best way to honour these contributions of the distinct professional was to create an award in his name.
The Steven Malama award was given for the first time in 2013 and since then, it is given to the top graduating student from ZIALE on an yearly basis. This prestigious award also carries a plaque, certificate of performance and a cash prize worth K15,000 which is a significant amount for fulfilling the future plans of the deserving candidates.