Opposition lawmakers say delays in releasing the expanded Constituency Development Fund are stalling health centres and other community projects, while the government insists the money is available but will only be disbursed once councils meet new performance-based requirements.

NEWS | Parliament | Local Government | Edwin Mauluka

Opposition lawmakers have pressed the government to immediately release Constituency Development Fund (CDF) allocations, arguing that delays are holding back development projects that councils are now mandated to deliver under Malawi’s expanded decentralisation programme.

The 2026/27 national budget allocated MWK1.145 trillion for the CDF, raising annual constituency allocations from MWK220 million to MWK5 billion in one of the country’s most significant devolution reforms.

Although the budget took effect on April 1 after Parliament approved it on March 24, district councils are yet to access the funds.

Raising a point of order during Tuesday’s sitting of Parliament, Dowa West MP Richard Chimwendo Banda said lawmakers were still asking cabinet ministers about local infrastructure projects that should now fall under the responsibility of district councils.

“All councils in the country have plans to renovate health centres and build new ones, but we are all waiting for the Constituency Development Fund,” he said.

Chimwendo Banda argued that once the money is released, MPs would shift their focus from seeking constituency projects to scrutinising government policy.

“But what we are doing now is moving in circles,” he said. “If the CDF is not honoured, these will be the same questions up to 2030.”

Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralisation Minister Joseph Mwanamvekha responded that the reformed CDF operates under a performance-based funding model. He said the government had already approved new implementation guidelines and was ready to release money to councils once they submitted project requests detailing the proposed works, contractors and funding requirements.

“We will pay. In fact, we already have the money as we speak today to pay advances. More than MWK200 billion is sitting there waiting for you,” Mwanamvekha said.

“We don’t want to release money the way it was done before. Any district council that submits its request will receive the funds as soon as possible.”

Leader of the Opposition Simplex Chithyola Banda backed Chimwendo Banda’s concerns, accusing the government of unnecessarily withholding funds approved by Parliament.

“If the answer is that the resources are being held somewhere, then they are being illegitimately held because this House authorised their release so that councils can start building health centres and implementing development projects,” he said.

Chithyola Banda also questioned the logic of tying CDF disbursements to performance, arguing that councils cannot be expected to demonstrate results before receiving funding.

“Performance should be measured after the funds have been utilised, not before they are released,” he said.

Chimwendo Banda further challenged the government’s claim that funds were available, noting that allocations that do not require procurement — such as MWK200 million earmarked for women and youth initiatives and MWK250 million for disaster response — could already have been released.

Deputy Leader of the House Shadreck Namalomba defended the government’s approach, saying several councils had already begun procurement processes by advertising projects.

“You don’t send money for something that hasn’t been prepared yet,” Namalomba said.

“The projects must first be advertised, contractors selected and contracts awarded before councils request advance payments. Be assured that the money is there and these projects will be implemented.”

First Deputy Speaker Victor Musowa echoed that position, saying some district councils, including Mulanje, had already started advertising tenders for CDF-funded projects.

“Once the procurement process has been completed, the councils will submit the documentation to the Ministry of Finance and Decentralisation, after which the funds will be transferred from Account Number One to the dedicated CDF account at the Reserve Bank of Malawi,” Musowa said.

—

In photo above, Chimwendo Banda

Also Read: New CDF guidelines allow disaster response expenditure

Related: President Mutharika must veto the CDF Amendment Bill