By Pemphero Malimba:
The Legal Aid Bureau has proposed a budget allocation of K3 billion for the 2025-26 financial year.
The bureau’s acting Director, Chimwemwe Chithope Mwale, made this proposal when appearing before the Public Appointments Committee (Pac) of Parliament at Parliament Building in Lilongwe yesterday.
Mwale expressed optimism that the proposed allocation would help enhance the bureau’s operations.
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“Every office where we are operating requires servicing, including the provision of stationery, fuel and motor vehicles.
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“We are also trying to expand our coverage so that we eventually have a presence in all 28 districts of Malawi. All these require resources,” he said.
Mwale added that inadequate funding continues to hinder the bureau’s operations, citing issues in the current financial year.
“For the 2024-25 financial year, we were allocated around K800 million, of which only K500 million has been funded by the Accountant General.
“Out of that, only around K400 million has been processed by the Accountant General and we have approximately K106 million that has not been processed for payment,” he said.
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However, he expressed hope that the committee would assist in addressing the funding challenges.
“The major milestone is for them to take our concerns seriously. We initially wrote to them and granting us this audience is something worth celebrating, as it shows they are taking our issues seriously. All I can say is that I am hopeful they will come to the bureau’s rescue,” Mwale said.
Pac Vice-Chairperson, Bester Awali, said the committee would lobby the government to allocate more funding to the bureau.
“We want to lobby the government to ensure that, during budgetary consultations, they take into account the need for adequate funding for the Legal Aid Bureau so that it can discharge its duties exceptionally well,” Awali said.
He added that the committee was committed to ensuring that people across the country have easy access to the bureau’s services.
The bureau was established under the Legal Aid Act of 2011 to provide legal aid services to indigent and vulnerable people in need of legal assistance.
It is currently operating through 23 offices across 21 districts in the country.
As of December 31, 2024, the bureau had recorded 26,829 cases, of which 17,560 were civil and 9,269 were criminal.
