Court dismisses Pacific Limited’s constitutional challenge to Malawi’s land laws

The High Court sitting as a Constitutional Court in Blantyre has dismissed a petition brought by privately owned Pacific Limited challenging the constitutionality of provisions within Malawi’s land laws, in one of the country’s most closely watched land cases in recent years. Pacific Limited had sought to challenge amendments to the Land Act and the […]

UK says future Malawi support will focus on investment and climate finance

The UK government says it is shifting the focus of its support to Malawi towards investment, climate finance and economic reform, while insisting its wider partnership with the country remains long term. In a statement issued on Wednesday, acting British High Commissioner and Development Director Ben Nicholson said the UK remained a “long-term friend and […]

Crossroads Hotel donates K5m to Football Legends Association ahead of AGM

Crossroads Hotel has donated K5 million to the Football Legends Association (FLA) to help cover expenses for the association’s annual general meeting, scheduled for 29 August. Speaking at the handover ceremony in Lilongwe, Crossroads Hotel general manager Jones Malili said the donation reflected the hotel’s corporate social responsibility commitments. “We thought it was very necessary […]

JEANS-GATE! Two MPs marched out of Malawi Parliament over dress code

Chaos erupted in Malawi’s Parliament on  Friday as two MPs were unceremoniously marched out of the chamber — all over their choice of trousers. Second Deputy Speaker Esther Jolobala ordered Edward Chileka Banda of Lilongwe Mapuyu South (Malawi Congress Party) and Morris Harrison Chikafa of Dedza Dzalanyama (Independent) to be escorted out after a fellow […]

Minister Chipungu sets out land and housing reform plans at UN dialogue

Malawi’s Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Chimwemwe Chipungu, has outlined a series of housing and land administration reforms she says are central to the country’s national development strategy, in remarks delivered at a United Nations dialogue on housing affordability, inclusion and sustainable urban development. Addressing the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive […]

Mutharika calls for stronger US investment as outgoing envoy takes leave

President Arthur Peter Mutharika has called for increased investment from the United States in key sectors of Malawi’s development agenda, saying stronger cooperation between the two countries would support progress in areas including agriculture, mining, education and health. The president made the remarks on Friday at Kamuzu Palace, during a farewell audience with outgoing United […]

CSOs urge DPP to recuse himself from Chinese trafficker’s case

A coalition of civil society organisations focused on climate change and conservation has called on Malawi’s Director of Public Prosecutions to recuse himself from all decisions relating to corruption charges against Lin Yunhua, a Chinese national convicted of running a transnational wildlife trafficking syndicate. The organisations noted that before his appointment to the post in […]

Chipungu tells UN meeting Malawi needs ‘decisive implementation’ on urban growth

Malawi’s Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Chimwemwe Chipungu, told the United Nations General Assembly’s High-Level Meeting on the Midterm Review of the New Urban Agenda on Wednesday that the coming decade “must be defined by decisive implementation,” as the organisation marked ten years since the agenda’s adoption. Delivering Malawi’s national statement in New […]

UK announces deep cuts to Malawi aid funding

The UK government has announced plans to cut its international development funding to Malawi by 60% in 2026-27, with reductions reaching 90% by 2028-29 compared with 2025-26 levels. Malawi received £50.2m in UK official development assistance (ODA) in 2025-26. Under funding plans published in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s (FCDO) Annual Report and Accounts […]

Water board chairman accused of hijacking utility as bidders threaten legal action

Blantyre Water Board (BWB) Board Chairperson Stanley Chirwa is facing calls for an independent investigation amid allegations that he has overstepped the boundaries of his role, intervening directly in procurement decisions and day-to-day management functions typically reserved for executive staff at the public utility.   The allegations centre on the prolonged suspension of five senior […]

MCP lawyer threatens contempt proceedings over unpaid rent at MEC’s Lilongwe warehouse

George Kadzipatike, the lawyer representing the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and three of its legislators who secured a court injunction blocking the relocation of the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) to Blantyre, has threatened further legal action unless the Commission’s outstanding rent is settled. MEC is facing a deadline to pay approximately K885 million in rental […]

Chaponda holds ‘migration talks’ with South Africa amid xenophobic crisis

A Malawian cabinet minister is facing questions after holding bilateral talks with his South African counterpart on easing cross-border movement, even as thousands of Malawians continue returning home after fleeing xenophobic violence. Minister of Foreign Affairs George Chaponda met South Africa’s Minister of International Relations, Ronald Lamola, in Salima on Thursday, on the sidelines of […]

MP calls for John Chilembwe Hospital name to be reverted

A Member of Parliament (MP) has sensationally called for a district hospital’s name to be scrapped — reigniting a row over a decision made by former president Lazarus Chakwera. Wilfred Mpisa, MP for Phalombe North East and a member of the ruling DPP, used his constituency statement in Parliament  to demand that John Chilembwe Hospital […]

Malawi MPs’ persistent late-coming draws fresh rebuke from deputy speaker

Deliberations in Malawi’s National Assembly began on a subdued note on Wednesday, with First Deputy Speaker Victor Musowa expressing concern over the late arrival of parliamentarians after only 78 of the chamber’s 222 members had registered by the scheduled 9:30am start time. Musowa said the low turnout — representing barely a third of the House […]

Navicha calls for economic empowerment to combat gender-based violence

Women’s economic dependence on their spouses is leaving many vulnerable to gender-based violence (GBV), Minister of Gender, Children and Social Welfare Mary Navicha has said, calling for greater investment in initiatives that promote women’s financial independence. Navicha made the remarks in Balaka on Wednesday after touring activities under the Pamodzi Kuthetsa Nkhanza (PKN) project, where […]

Malawi Supreme Court stays ruling on Army generals’ redeployment

Malawi’s Supreme Court of Appeal has today handed the government a dramatic last-minute lifeline in its bitter legal war with five senior military generals — granting a stay of execution just as it looked like the state faced a humiliating climbdown. A panel of judges led by Chief Justice Rizine Mzikamanda sensationally granted the stay […]

Maranatha Academy pledges K12bn for scholarships to widen access to secondary education

Ernest Kaonga, director of Maranatha Academy, has said that a significant number of academically talented students in Malawi are being denied access to quality secondary education due to financial constraints faced by their families. In response, the institution has launched its 2026 National Scholarship Programme, which will provide 500 scholarships covering full secondary school tuition […]

Malawi Parliament committee flags funding gaps at public universities, calls for increased subventions

Malawi’s Parliamentary Committee on Education, Science and Technology has called for increased government subventions to public universities, warning that persistent underfunding is undermining the quality of higher education across the country. In a report presented to Parliament on Wednesday by chairperson Mutani Elliam Tambala, the committee said inadequate funding, infrastructure deficits, staffing shortages, procurement delays […]