Barely two days after being sworn in as Minister of Local Government, Ben Phiri has wasted no time getting to work, holding a series of high-level meetings with key development partners as part of efforts to strengthen service delivery in Malawi’s local councils.
Posting on his official Facebook page, Phiri described Tuesday as “a busy yet fulfilling day” that began with a management meeting aimed at strategizing a working plan for effective delivery of the ministry’s mandate.
Later in the day, the minister met delegations from the World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to discuss ongoing and future projects under the Ministry of Local Government.
During the meeting with IFAD, the delegation expressed concern over the low absorption rate of the TRADE Project, which has seen only 38 percent (€40 million) of the allocated €125 million utilized over the past five years.
The delegation also highlighted challenges such as delays in procurement processes, decentralization of procurement to councils, and project coordination gaps.
Phiri said both parties agreed to fast-track the recruitment of National Project Coordination staff to address the issues raised and enhance implementation efficiency. In a separate meeting with the World Bank, the minister revealed that the Bank had committed $150 million towards the Governance to Enable Service Delivery (GESD) II project.
He also requested technical and financial assistance from the Bank to develop a digital dashboard that would monitor Constituency Development Fund (CDF) projects in real time.
“The dashboard will be part of the digital solutions we intend to introduce to monitor the performance of CDF projects,” Phiri posted on Facebook. He added: “The Ministry remains committed to fostering more strategic partnerships to improve service delivery in our councils and uplift communities as we leave no one behind.”
Phiri’s immediate engagement with development partners signals an early push to reform and accelerate local government performance across Malawi.
