Malawi Welcomes Broad International Observer Missions

Malawi has welcomed several international election observer missions ahead of its general elections due on 16 September 2025, in a move intended to enhance transparency and confidence in the electoral process. The European Union, Southern African Development Community, African Union in conjunction with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, among others, have deployed teams to monitor presidential, parliamentary and local government voting, campaigning, vote counting and results transmission.

The European Union Election Observation Mission, launched in Lilongwe by Chief Observer Lucia Annunziata, comprises a core team of analysts which arrived in the country on 2 August. The mission includes 28 long-term observers from 24 countries, and will be bolstered before polling day by 32 short-term observers, a delegation of Members of the European Parliament, and diplomats from EU member states plus Norway, Canada and Switzerland. Teams are tasked with observing all stages of the electoral cycle across all districts. The EU mission emphasises neutrality and adherence to both Malawian law and international democratic standards.

The Southern African Development Community has named Themba N. Masuku as Head of its Electoral Observation Mission. The SADC observers have undergone refresher training and will be deployed across Malawi to observe similar phases of the election process—campaigning, polling, counting and tabulation—in order to assess whether the elections meet regional protocols for democratic elections.

Another key observer group is the joint mission of the African Union and COMESA. Led by former Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn Boshe, assisted by Ambassador Ashraf Rashed, they bring together 76 short-term observers drawn from election experts, civil society representatives, human rights and media professionals, gender specialists and youth organisations across a broad spectrum of member states. Their mandate covers opening of polls, voting, closing and counting in all regions of the country.

Malawi’s Electoral Commission, under Chairperson Annabel Mtalimanja, has also taken steps to strengthen the election infrastructure. The Commission has engaged with six international pre-election observer missions as part of its transparency framework, initiated dry-runs of its Results Management System to test vote transmission mechanisms, and called for accreditation of observers both local and international.