Africa-Press – Malawi. Ward councillors will no longer have a hand in identifying projects under the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) as the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development rolls out sweeping reforms aimed at tightening accountability and curbing abuse in the 2025/2026 financial year.
Unveiling the new measures, Minister of Local Government Ben Phiri said all CDF projects will now be directly overseen by District Commissioners (DCs) and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) in respective councils to ensure smooth, transparent, and corruption-free implementation.
In a sharp departure from past practice, project identification will be handled through the Village Development Committees (VDCs) and Area Development Committees (ADCs) — where Members of Parliament are members — effectively cutting out ward councillors from the process.
“ADC chairpersons will be responsible for completing project identification forms to be submitted to their respective District Commissioners,” Phiri explained. “This process will not involve ward councillors.”
The move, according to the ministry, is designed to bring order and transparency to a fund that has long been dogged by allegations of political interference, ghost projects, and poor accountability.
Introduced to accelerate grassroots development, the CDF has often been marred by disputes between MPs and councillors over control of funds, leading to project delays and misuse.
Analysts say the new system could restore credibility to the fund—if properly implemented. However, critics warn that sidelining councillors, who are closer to communities, might weaken local representation and ownership of projects.
As the 2025/2026 fiscal year approaches, all eyes will be on how the reforms reshape power dynamics in local governance—and whether they finally deliver development that reaches the people.
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