The Forgotten Half: Women Shut Out of Government Business Deals
Women in Malawi are being systematically locked out of public procurement opportunities, with a new study revealing that women-led firms access less than one percent of all government contracts — a staggering indictment of how deeply entrenched gender inequality remains in the country’s economic systems.
The study, conducted by the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) Federation of Women in Business Malawi Chapter, paints a grim picture: despite women making up 52 percent of Malawi’s population, they are virtually invisible in the distribution of lucrative state contracts that account for three-quarters of the national budget.
“This is a crisis of exclusion,” declared Selina Mwenelupembe, chairperson of Comesa Women in Business Malawi Chapter, during the study’s presentation in Lilongwe. “We found that women-led businesses access less than one percent of the national budget. It underscores persistent gender disparity in public procurement.”
According to the findings, from 2020—when the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Order was introduced—up to now, women-owned businesses have received contracts worth K23.75 billion, representing a mere 0.44 percent of the total procurement value.
Behind these figures are stories of structural bias and systemic neglect. The study attributes women’s exclusion to a combination of barriers: rigid financial and technical requirements, limited access to information on procurement processes, and the complexity of application procedures that often intimidate small-scale female entrepreneurs.
Even worse, 36 percent of women entrepreneurs are not aware of the MSME Order meant to empower them.
“Most women-led businesses are small and struggling to scale up,” Mwenelupembe said. “Without deliberate policies that make the playing field fair, women will remain spectators in the economy.”
Government officials admit the gap is glaring but cite resource constraints. Fred Simwaka, deputy director for women empowerment in the Ministry of Gender, said the ministry is trying to encourage women to formalise their businesses and take advantage of available frameworks.
“Awareness of the Gender Equality Act has improved, but our reach is limited by resources,” he said.
The Graca Machel Trust, which funded the study, has called for urgent reform. Its Malawi country project coordinator, Towera Newa, said: “Public procurement must be redesigned to include women. The current structures are not friendly. Women should be able to trade with their own government.”
The findings expose a harsh truth — Malawi’s economic system continues to sideline the very people who drive homes, feed families, and sustain communities.
As the report concludes, “A national budget that excludes women is a national budget that excludes progress.”
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