It is undeniable that Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) play a significant role in promoting access to education for children in Malawi. Almost always, these NGOs operate in areas and situations where government resources seem to be limited. Through external funding, which could not be channelled through the government, NGOs have bridged the resource gap and managed to build schools, provide bursaries to children who lack school necessities, and help build the capacity of teachers, mainly through training.
“However, it has been found that there seem to be clashes in priority and approach between the government and CSOs.”
Evolving role of NGOs in education
Historically, missionaries introduced formal education to Malawi. As they spread Western religion, they opened schools where they offered lessons in subjects such as reading, writing, counting, carpentry, bricklaying, and needlecraft. In the post-colonial era, the government assumed total control over education issues, such as policy, curriculum, deployment of teachers, and supply of teaching and learning materials. During this period, only a small number of NGOs were involved in adult literacy and early childhood education.[1]
It has been claimed that since the introduction of multiparty democracy in Malawi, the role of NGOs has evolved from providing resources to engaging in policy advocacy. This is where they participate in providing guidelines, input, and recommendations to the government on how specific policies should be crafted to fully reflect the needs of the people on the ground.[2] However, it has been found that there seem to be clashes in priority and approach between the government and CSOs. These clashes are apparent when CSOs attempt to be innovative or pilot programs intended to find approaches where current policies seem to have failed.[3] Nevertheless, these clashes seem to be ironed out in the best interest of the child as alternative approaches are found for the promotion of children’s right to education.
Perceived roles in ensuring education access
Given the emerging strategic position that NGOs hold in Malawi, it is most likely that they can support and advocate for the development of explicit policies that address issues of discrimination pertaining to user fees. Such policies can be based on the premise that no child should be excluded from primary education on the basis of inability to pay user fees and free primary education.[4] In the same light, the NGOs can work actively with the government to find alternatives to support children who are impoverished and unable to access these user fees.
Furthermore, NGOs have access to resources to provide bursaries in the form of school supplies, including school uniforms and payment of fees for students. Through this support, the NGOs can assist students who are failing to pay the user fees to sit for their final national examination. Where this is not apparent, a waiver or subsidies on the fees, let alone staggered payment of the costs over a specific period, can be negotiated with the Board to allow the children to sit for their exams.
Another role that NGOs can play in advocating for children’s right to education is working with parents and guardians. This can be through economic empowerment programmes that support the independence and self-reliance of the parents. Through such an approach, the parents would be empowered to find the income that would help them access resources to help the education of their children.
Besides, NGOs are already working in the communities to raise awareness on different issues. NGOs seem to attain their mandate from the people that they work with. Therefore, the NGOs can use the same trust in the people, their immediate presence in the community and their leveraged power in coordination to raise awareness of the people and children on their constitutional right to education. This raised awareness on rights will also move the people to demand that the government provide accessible education to their children and subsequent removal of the user fees and other access barriers. Additionally, it is more likely that when these demands come from the parents, MANEB and the government will be prompted to act decisively and quickly.
“Thus, the NGOs can also work and advocate for the fulfilment of children’s education rights, specifically the removal of user fees, through the MHRC.”
It also falls within the roles of the CSOs to advocate and push the government to implement policies and actions that have the best interest of the child, even in light of limited resources. As it is provided for in Article 4 of the CRC, states are mandated to undertake all appropriate legislative, administrative and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognised in the present Convention. It is, therefore, reasonable to expect that the states would make sure that they work with NGOs as one of the administrative approaches to ensuring that children have access to education without discrimination of any sought.
Relatedly, the establishment of Independent National Human Rights Institutions (INHRI), such as the Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC), falls within the aspiration of Article 4 above. Thus, the NGOs can also work and advocate for the fulfilment of children’s education rights, specifically the removal of user fees, through the MHRC. Such collaboration ensures that the vital role played by NGOs in promoting children’s rights is enhanced, as is emphasised by the Committee on the Rights of Children in its General Comment on the Role of INHRI.[5]
However, the Committee to the CRC emphasises that enabling the private sector, and NGOs to provide services, run institutions, provide education and so on, does not in any way lessen the State’s obligation to ensure for all children within its jurisdiction the full recognition and realization of all rights in the Charter.[6] In other words, it still remains the duty of the government to ensure that children access an education without hindrances, which includes demanding user fees, more especially from children who are impoverished.
[1] Esme Chipo Kadzamira & Demis Kunje ‘The Changing Roles of Non-Governmental Organisations in Education in Malawi’ (2002) Academy for Educational Development, Washington, < https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED467214.pdf > accessed 08 April 2025.
[2] Makuwira Jonathan, ‘Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Participatory Development in Basic Education in Malawi’ (2004) 5 (2) Current Issues in Comparative Education 113-124.
[3] Esme Chipo Kadzamira & Demis Kunje ‘The Changing Roles of Non-Governmental Organisations in Education in Malawi’ (2002) Academy for Educational Development, Washington, < https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED467214.pdf > accessed 08 April 2025.
[4] Constitution of the Republic of Malawi Sec 13(f).
[5] UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment No. 2 (2002): The Role of Independent National Human Rights Institutions in the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child, CRC/GC/2002/2, 15 November 2002 para 26.
[6] General Comment 5 on “State Party obligations under The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (article 1) and Systems Strengthening for Child Protection, 17.
