With just five months before Malawi heads to the polls on September 16, civil society organisations (CSOs) are sounding the alarm over a serious funding gap for voter civic education--pleading for K30 billion while donors remain silent.
Electoral stakeholders including the Civil Society Elections Integrity Forum, Nice Trust, and election observers say the absence of comprehensive, well-funded civic and voter education could threaten the credibility of the upcoming elections. They warn that misinformation and disinformation may fill the vacuum left by a lack of accurate, non-partisan voter information.
CSO leaders, speaking on Tuesday, confirmed that no donor has committed any funding for voter education. Benedicto Kondowe, chairperson of the Civil Society Elections Integrity Forum, said a few organisations are trying to integrate voter messaging into their other activities--but such efforts fall short of what's needed.
Kondowe urged the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) to ramp up efforts, while also cautioning that relying on political parties to deliver civic messages could backfire, as it risks biased and misleading information.
Echoing these concerns, Nice Trust executive director Gray Kalindekafe said that despite having the capacity to run a nationwide civic education campaign, the Trust is overwhelmed by demand and hampered by limited resources. He called for parties to support mobilization efforts without spreading misleading narratives.
Nice Trust did reach over 20.8 million people during the voter registration drive, but Kalindekafe stressed that logistical and financial hurdles remain significant. Other accredited institutions are facing similar struggles.
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International elections observer Moses Mkandawire warned of rising voter apathy if citizens are not adequately engaged, while political analyst George Chaima emphasized that the window for action is rapidly closing. He called on government to directly fund accredited stakeholders instead of just offering accreditation without support.
So far, 116 institutions have been accredited by MEC to carry out civic and voter education. But with no financial support and time running out, the fate of voter engagement in the 2025 polls hangs in the balance.
Past election data shows a troubling trend of voter disengagement: over 2.4 million registered voters didn't turn up in 2019, and nearly 1.8 million skipped the 2020 fresh presidential elections.
With the K30 billion appeal still unanswered, the silence from donors--angoti duuuuuuu--is growing louder by the day.
