Coalition secures deal for employers to foot nurses’ licence fees after hike sparks alarm

The Coalition for Health Workers (HRH PLUS) has engaged the Nurses and Midwives Council of Malawi (NMCM) to challenge a steep hike in annual practice licence fees introduced last month, securing an agreement that employers should now cover the cost for nurses and midwives.

Speaking after the high-level interface, HRH PLUS Technical Advisor Benson Phiri said nurses and midwives across the country had been alarmed by the increased fees, which come amid a rising cost of living and mounting operational expenses.

“Nurses and midwives across the country were alarmed by these increased licence fees, which is why we engaged the Council directly to map out tangible lasting solutions,” Phiri said.

“Take-home pay can barely survive when practitioners are forced to absorb these hiked professional rates alongside escalating operational costs, including exorbitant transportation to and from health facilities,” he added.

The revised fees were promulgated under Government Notice No. 74 of the Nurses and Midwives (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, published in the Malawi Gazette Supplement on 14 August 2026.

Under Schedule Item 9 of the amended regulations, annual renewal costs across all qualification tiers have increased by between 30 and 33 percent, affecting registered nurses, midwives, technicians and nurse-midwife technicians.

Phiri said following engagement with NMCM, the Council has agreed that, going forward, employers should be responsible for paying licence fees on behalf of nurses and midwives in Malawi.

“Nurses and midwives should now be happy to note that we have agreed with Council that going forward employers should be the ones paying for licence fees for nurses and midwives in Malawi,” said Phiri, who is also an aspirant for the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives (NONM) presidency.

HRH PLUS Executive Director Tiyamike Goliati said the engagement marked just the beginning of the coalition’s advocacy efforts.

“This engagement is only our first step — we are also taking this fight to the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives regarding their recently hiked membership fees,” Goliati said.

The coalition maintains that protecting the welfare and professional dignity of healthcare personnel remains critical to sustaining quality healthcare delivery in Malawi.

HRH PLUS says it will continue pushing health regulatory and union bodies to shield frontline workers from what it terms “unsustainable financial levies” that risk driving nurses and midwives out of the profession.