President Chakwera calls for strong NGOs to give checks and balances

Malawi leader President Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has urged Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in the country to make sure that they strive working towards clear premise and purpose observing that these are the two main problems that as a nation must heed and work together to correct.

President Chakwera was speaking in Lilongwe during the 4th edition of the NGO sector report launch.

“As Head of Government, I need NGOs and CSOs that are credible and strong to hold those of us in public office accountable, ” he said.

He said due to lack of clear premise and purpose for the creation of NGOs it has been impossible to assess and regulate the alignment of the sector with the country’s development goals, the effectiveness of the sector in building the kind of capacity that leads to greater self-resilience instead of dependence.

The President also mentioned of needless and wasteful duplications and redundancies by NGOs saying that at this stage the country needs organizations that have clear focus, clear targets, clear timelines, clear points of synergy and collaborations with each other and state actors and clear metrics and prerequisites for graduation.

“Now correcting these anomalies is a good thing, but that process begin with coming together like this to share experiences and ideas about how to achieve these ends. It also begin with affirming our shared belief in the indispensable role of NGO’s in achieving our country’s development goals.

“And this is why the 4th edition of the NGO sector report we are launching today is so important, because any remedies to the ills the sector suffer from must be based on a precise diagnosis,” Chakwera said.

The President also commended some NGO’s which are committed in delivering clear outcomes, like construction of schools, hospitals and homes for the vulnerable, educating the masses saying this is inline with country’s human capitalization agenda.

Introducing communities to modern agricultural techniques and providing relief in times of disaster is one the things the Malawi leader commended NGOs for saying this is critical in setting the pace to bring tangible and lasting transformation to Malawians.

The President has directed minister of finance and gender to jointly engage NGO Regulatory Authority (NGORA) and Reserve Bank of Malawi which regulates the financial sector in ensuring that all forex received in the NGO sector comes through regulated systems.