Malawi has 32 prosecutors for 22 million people. Clooney wants to help
Malawi has just 32 prosecutors at its Directorate of Public Prosecutions to serve a population of 22 million – a shortfall that has left the justice system straining to bring cases of violence against women and children to court. Now, the Clooney Foundation for Justice says it wants to help close that gap.
The foundation, co-founded by human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, announced new partnerships this week with Malawi’s Directorate of Public Prosecutions and Legal Aid Bureau.
Under the arrangement, early-career women lawyers will be placed within the Chief Prosecutor’s Gender Based Violence and Child Crimes Unit, and at the Legal Aid Bureau, to work on cases involving child marriage, violence and sexual abuse.
It marks the foundation’s first direct engagement with Malawi’s state prosecutorial office, building on existing work with the Women Lawyers Association and civil society groups in the country.
Alongside the legal placements, the foundation – working with Microsoft and the Oxford Institute of Technology and Justice – is equipping the Gender Based and Child Crimes Unit with new computers, cloud and internet infrastructure, a bespoke case-management system, and AI tools designed to speed up prosecutors’ handling of gender violence cases.
“We’re thrilled to be announcing these partnerships to expand access to justice for women and children in Malawi,” said Amal Clooney.
“I am proud that the Clooney Foundation can support Malawian women lawyers to prosecute cases involving violence against women and children and to co-create AI tools that help lawyers deliver justice for many more survivors.”
The announcement came as Malawi’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Charles Mhango, hosted a Clooney Foundation delegation at Capital Hill in Lilongwe, led by Amal Clooney herself.
The meeting, held under the banner “Strengthening Legal Frameworks, Access to Justice, and Ending Child Marriage and Gender-Based Violence,” saw Mhango reaffirm the government’s commitment to protecting women and children, particularly through tackling child marriage and gender-based violence.
“True justice requires a multisectoral and collaborative approach,” Mhango told the delegation. “No single entity can achieve true justice by working single-handedly.”
He was joined by Malawi’s Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, Mary Thom Navicha.
Mhango praised the foundation’s existing backing of the Women Lawyers Association of Malawi and the Centre for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance, and proposed a formal memorandum of understanding between the ministry – including the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Legal Aid Bureau – and the Clooney Foundation, to deepen the collaboration.
He linked the initiative to Malawi’s long-term development blueprint, the Malawi 2063 Vision, saying the government, under President Peter Mutharika, remained committed to ensuring every woman and child in the country lived in safety and dignity.
Clooney’s delegation included Professor Philippa Webb, KC, co-founder of the Oxford Institute of Technology and Justice; the foundation’s co-chief executive, David Sagal; senior Microsoft officials; and the foundation’s director of strategy and administration, Perri Lyons.
The visit also drew attention in Malawi for a more unlikely reason: Amal Clooney’s husband.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the justice minister noted that George Clooney was “a major Hollywood star, widely recognised for blockbuster films such as Ocean’s Eleven” – a nod to the actor’s two Academy Awards, for Syriana in 2005 and as a producer of Argo in 2012, and his nominations across six different Oscar categories over his career.
