Africa-Press – Malawi. Malawi’s local councils are once again on the global stage for all the wrong reasons—this time, accused of gross financial mismanagement that has triggered a damning demand from the World Bank to refund a staggering K1.3 billion by June 30, 2025. The money, disbursed under the Social Support for Resilient Livelihoods Project (SSRLP), was meant to support Malawi’s poorest. Instead, it was looted, squandered, or simply vanished into the deep, dark pit of council incompetence and corruption.
A hard-hitting financial expenditure review by the World Bank reveals that local authorities across Malawi failed to justify their spending, flouted procurement procedures, used unauthorised vouchers, and operated in blatant violation of the Public Finance Management Act of 2022. The result? A shameful national embarrassment—and a chilling reminder of just how broken Malawi’s local governance is.
Take Nsanje District Council for example. This council alone must cough up K169 million, with an eye-watering K166 million missing supporting documents altogether. What happened to the money? Who signed off on it? Where did it go? No answers—just silence and shrugged shoulders.
Dedza District Council isn’t any better. They’re expected to refund over K93 million due to sketchy procurement practices and unauthorized payments. These are not small accounting errors. These are deliberate acts of financial vandalism, committed under the noses—and in some cases, with the full participation—of council officials who have turned public offices into private cash dispensers.
Each council received official communication from the World Bank outlining how they violated funding policies, misused taxpayer funds, and ignored basic accountability standards. These revelations paint a picture of institutions drowning in negligence, rot, and unrestrained theft.
And yet, what is the response? A few limp wrist statements. NLGFC CEO Kondwani Santhe says the councils have “made commitments” to refund. Commitments? After years of abuse, that’s all we get? Promises and pledges, while the poor continue to suffer?
Even Malawi Local Government Association (Malga) boss Hadrod Mkandawire weakly attributed the debacle to a few “bad apples” and “laxity.” No, Mr. Mkandawire—this isn’t just about bad apples. This is about a rotten orchard, infected from the roots to the branches. It’s about a culture of impunity that allows thieves in public office to sleep peacefully while stealing from hungry mouths.
For years, Malawi’s councils have been repeatedly warned, audited, and exposed. Yet nothing changes. From the 2015 Tilitonse Fund Report to 2023 PAC findings, the chorus has remained the same: councils are unfit, incapable, and unrepentant when it comes to handling public funds. And now, the World Bank has had enough.
The implications of this scandal go beyond embarrassment. This financial black eye puts Malawi’s credibility on the line. It threatens future funding. It signals to international donors that our systems cannot be trusted, and our officials cannot be held accountable.
The World Bank has demanded refunds, internal investigations, disciplinary actions, and monthly audit reports. But what Malawians really want—what they deserve—is justice. We need heads to roll. We need arrests, dismissals, public apologies, and lifetime bans from public service.
Because until that happens, Malawi’s local councils will remain what they have sadly become—dens of corruption, protected by a veil of bureaucracy and shielded by cowardly leadership.
This is not just a call for accountability. It is a national cry for redemption. Enough is enough. The looting must stop. The silence must end. And the people—whose lives these funds were meant to uplift—must finally come first.
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