United Kingdom (UK) has committed an extra £10.8m (about K11 billion) to support Malawi in
tackling serious and organised corruption.
Since 2016, the UK has been supporting Malawi through the Tackling Serious and Organised
Corruption (TSOC) Programme to strengthen the anti-corruption environment and increase
penalties for serious and organised corruption.
The extra funding will see this programme being extended up to 2024, supporting law
enforcement efforts in asset recovery and addressing high-level crime.
Duddridge said: “To alleviate poverty, we must tackle corruption. The UK is committed to
helping Malawi do so, building robust institutions to tackle serious and organised crime.
Chakwera meets UK Minister
funding the UK can support this administration’s vision of fighting corruption by addressing
technical and political barriers to reducing corruption in Malawi, and building stronger public
financial management systems that help prevent corruption occurring in the first place.”
The TSOC programme will reduce the opportunity for corrupt activity by strengthening the
systems regulating how money and services move through the economy; and increase the
risks of engaging in corruption, by publicly exposing corrupt individuals and corporations,
seizing assets, and improving strategic casework and conviction rates.
The UK has been supporting the Malawian authorities to investigate high-level corruption
since the Cashgate scandal of 2013. Some of the notable achievements include:
The conviction of 17 individuals (14 having been sentenced to a total of 79 years in prison)
and MK782 million retrieved in assets linked to a major corruption scandal called Cashgate
with the help of UK technical assistance and forensic audit support. A further MK16.5 billion
has been identified in ‘sums at risk’ for forfeiture pending scrutiny by the courts.
Malawi’s legal system has been strengthened through the introduction of plea bargaining
and digital data analysis – with UK support – for the first time in select cases.
Enhanced digital forensic capability of the Anti-Corruption Bureau through a new digital data
forensic suite.
Improved international law enforcement cooperation with mutual legal assistance provided
by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and South Africa’s Public Asset Forfeiture Unit.
Strengthened civil society advocacy working in a flexible and adaptive way to explore the
deterrent effectiveness of innovative approaches to tackling corruption
In 2019, Transparency International rated Malawi 123/180 on its Corruption Perception Index.
72% of Malawians think corruption got worse in the last year according to the 2017
Afrobarometer data and only 64% of Malawians think ordinary people can make a difference
in the fight against corruption– down from 84% when last asked in 2013.
Global Financial Integrity estimate that £400m (USD585m) leaves Malawi illegally every year
– twice the country’s annual health budget.