Human Resource Bill on the cards
The Ministry of Justice has reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to see the Human Resource (HR) Management in Malawi Bill, which would regulate the HR profession in the country, tabled in Parliament soon.
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Bright Msaka, said this on Friday when he opened the Institute of People Management Malawi (IPMM) Annual Lakeshore Conference held under the theme ‘Energising Business Leadership; a Focus on Human Capital Management.”
As part of the formulation process, the government has been engaging stakeholders for their input into the proposed law.
If adopted, the law will help govern the profession and improve its effectiveness.
Msaka said the Bill will be deliberated at cabinet level before end of the year and then be tabled to Parliament for deliberation.
“The aim of this intended piece of legislation is to establish a professional body that will regulate and spearhead the human resource profession in Malawi.
“I would like to assure you that the government will continue to champion the processing of the draft bill so that it is presented to Parliament for enactment,” Msaka said.
Other professions such as accounting, auditing, law and procurement are regulated by specific Acts of Parliament.
Msaka said it is only fit and proper that, the Human Resources Management profession, should also have own piece of legislation to regulate it.
“Malawi will immensely benefit from having a professional body to regulate the HR management profession, since this is the most critical resource in any organisation,” he said.
He then challenged the HR professionals to be well trained, ethically guided, disciplined and stimulated human resource management practitioners, to meticulously and sustainably drive the reforms agenda in both public and private sectors.
He said since human resource management practitioners are the custodians and enforcers of staff motivation and discipline in the workplace, they need to be exemplary in terms of performance standards, professionalism, adherence to ethics and integrity.
“We need, in this very important profession, a cadre of managers that are intelligent: top performers that can make our various organizations effectively compete at a global level.
“We need managers that can anticipate the future, and see around the corner. We therefore need managers that can hire and train staff that will grab the opportunities, and meet the challenges, that tomorrow’s world will present.” Msaka said.
IPM-Malawi president, Michel Ndaferankhande, said legislating the profession would facilitate growth and also help promote efficiency.
Ndaferankhande said, if passed into law, the Bill would make it mandatory for HR professionals to be members of the institute, among other things.
Currently, the association boasts of having over 350 paid-up members.
