09/02/2026
UNDER FOREIGN SKIES β ZAMBIANS IN RUSSIA: Muyunda Mike Mubita
By: Patson N. Musenge Jnr
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βWhen the call finally came to say youβve been selected, I was actually at work.β
For Muyunda Mike Mubita, the path to a medical career was never a straight line, nor was it a starry-eyed dream. A Lozi by tribe, born and raised in Lusaka with his secondary education rooted deep in the Western Province, Muyunda is a man defined by structured ambition. Fluent in Lozi and English, with working knowledge of Bemba, Nyanja, and Tonga, his worldview has always been wide. Yet, Russia was a door he opened almost casually; an opportunity presented by God that would have been a pity to waste.
When he applied for the Russian government scholarship in 2021, his confidence in the selection process wasnβt high. He had applied to China the year prior and was rejected. Unphased, he kept his passport ready, drafted his synopsis, and continued his daily routine as a back-office team lead at the MTN Zambia call center in Lusaka. When the selection notification arrived, he simply stepped out of the office, enrolled in Russian language classes at the Russian House, and prepared for the unknown.
Now entering his final year of Pharmacy at Belgorod State University, Muyundaβs presence in Russia sits at a rare intersection: he is the first Zambian pharmacist at his institution to pursue his degree entirely in English, a medium of study pioneered by his university.
His choice of pharmacy itself was a cold, calculated compromise. Originally drawn to accounting and finance, he found that the scholarship framework didnβt support his primary preference. Medicine was his alternative, but a close examination of Zambiaβs doctor-to-patient ratio: standing at an overwhelming 1 to 15,000, steered him away from General Medicine.
βI love the work doctors do: the life-saving, the diagnosis, the problem-solving,β he explains. βBut they have too much on their plate, leaving little room for anything else. I am a social, outgoing person; I didnβt want to be enclosed in one space.β
Pharmacy offered the ideal middle ground: 50% health science and 50% business administration. In pharmacy, he found a field where he could innovate, research drugs, and solve patient problems, while mastering the commercial mechanics of what is, fundamentally, an essential industry.
Yet, what defines Muyundaβs time under foreign skies isnβt just what he learns in the lecture halls; it is the profound personal transformation he underwent after landing in Russia.
Back in Zambia, he had been a secular rap artist. Moving abroad, however, triggered a deep spiritual evolution. Aligning his life closely with the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), he put secular music behind him. While he still writes rap songs, his pen is now dedicated entirely to gospel music.
This spiritual grounding naturally fueled an exhaustive portfolio of community leadership. A former cadet first lieutenant in secondary school and a graduate of several international leadership platforms; including Harvardβs Aspire Institute, Muyunda stepped up when his community needed direction. He served as the Belgorod City Representative and subsequently as the President of the Zambian Studentsβ Association in Belgorod.
That leadership was tested in the most literal sense. Belgorod, situated along the Ukrainian border, quickly became one of the most precarious locations for international students as conflict escalated. Muyunda didnβt just manage student life; he managed crisis response.
When the situation deteriorated to the point where 6,000 residents evacuated the city, Muyunda himself was relocated to Tver. Rather than remaining passive, he personally briefed the Zambian Embassy, urging them to liaise with the Ministry to temporarily redirect incoming Zambian scholars away from Belgorod until security stabilized. Furthermore, through online platforms he co-moderates, his team actively warned newly awarded scholars to omit Belgorod from their university preference lists; only giving the green light a year later when conditions calmed.
Beyond crisis management, Muyunda has systematically built a bridge for the next generation of Zambian scholars. Partnering with a fellow pharmacy student based in Novosibirsk, he co-founded an online academy that offers Russian language lessons to incoming students who cannot access or afford preparatory classes back home.
Through WhatsApp guidance platforms, he acts as a mentor, conducting mock panel interviews, reviewing documentation, and drafting academic synopses.
βIf you look at many of the students who have come over the past few years, especially for pharmacy, most of them used the synopsis I personally wrote,β he notes. βI look at what they submit in the group and think, I wrote that. It gives me a sense that I am opening a path for those coming behind me.β
Having faced the cultural shocks of Russia; from the open smoking culture among youth to the sharp adjustment of Russian cuisine, Muyunda relies on a tight-knit African community, his church, and a disciplined routine that includes martial arts and weightlifting for self-defense and balance.
As he prepares to graduate and step into the professional world as an author, songwriter, and pharmacist, his advice to young Zambians remains resolute:
βLet them come. All these things they hear in the media: the fears, the doubts; donβt let them stop you. Education here is an experience you will enjoy. Just know your purpose, come, and build.β
[Picture: Muyunda Mike Mubita]
Credit: Kuchalo
