Despite a record K42.5 billion allocation to the CDF in the 2025/26 National Budget based on the previous number of 193 constituencies, many communities are still waiting for basic infrastructure promised years ago.
Our investigations in Chikwawa, Neno, Ntcheu, Nsanje, and Mangochi have uncovered a widening gap between allocation and delivery as well as between what the CDF guidelines say and what actually happens on the ground during execution.
This raises urgent concerns about the effectiveness, transparency, and accountability of the CDF, a fund that has grown exponentially from K1 million per constituency in 2006 to K220 million per MP today.
For perspective, the CDF’s growth has far outpaced the District Development Fund (DDF), which supports broader council-driven projects. In some years, CDF allocations have exceeded DDF by over 500 percent, according to budget documents we have reviewed.
Budget documents show that the CDF stood at K579 million in 2015/16 before rising to K2.02 billion the following year.
By 2023/24, the fund had grown to K7.72 billion, before jumping to K19.3 billion in 2024/25 and doubling again to K42.5 billion this financial year.
In contrast, the DDF has grown modestly from K3.2 billion in 2019/20 to K7.6 billion in 2025/26.
Yet, our field reporting reveals a consistent pattern of ghost projects, political deflections, and disillusioned communities forced to fund their own development.
A shared pattern of misuse
In Chikwawa Central, official records show that four teachers’ houses were completed at Natsengwe Primary School using CDF money. Yet, our visit revealed only one house, built entirely by the community.
“We asked our member of Parliament to help us, but he never came back,” said Lapukeni Khuleya, chairperson of the Parent-Teacher Association. The school, with over 2 000 learners, still holds 10 classes under trees.
In Chikwawa East, ADC chairperson Alfred Fundi confirmed that of the eight agreed-upon projects, only two have seen partial progress, with others either half-built or abandoned for years.
Their MP’s response to enquiries about the delays? That the government has not released the funds—a claim that contradicts Treasury records.
Similar stories were found in Neno, where school blocks remain unbuilt and a key bridge is unconstructed.
In Neno South, a police unit has reportedly been constructed using CDF. However, school blocks at Mulaza and Mpalamikango that were listed in the area development plan have not materialised. Learners still attend classes under trees.
Communities in the Bwanali area had also anticipated new teacher houses, but none has been built. The Matope Bridge, a key link to the local health centre, remains unconstructed. Last year, one person died while attempting to cross the river to seek care during the rainy season.
In Neno North, Lisungwi Ward Councillor Martin Ngwangwa said they submitted a plan to repair the roof of a school block at Kawale Primary School. The roof was destroyed by heavy rains three years ago. The project remains untouched.
Two major bridges at Mposadala and Fifi—both of which connect schools and villages—were also proposed, but have not been constructed.
In Ntcheu, a community-built mud school was falsely recorded as a CDF project, while teachers walk up to 15 kilometres due to a lack of housing.
In Ntcheu South, there was a claim that Bamba Primary School was built using CDF. But during a site visit, Weekend Nation found no government-built structure. The school was opened in 1999 and has two classroom blocks made of mud, constructed by the community.
Teachers walk up to 15 kilometres to reach the school due to a lack of housing nearby. Only one teacher’s house exists, built in 2013. During the rainy season, two rivers—Lisungwi and Mfuleni Wamchenga—cut off access to the school.
Community chairperson Christina Matthews said government officials visited the area in 2024 and promised to build them a school block.
“They asked us to provide sand and bricks, which we did. They said work would start in April this year, but nothing has happened,” she said. “Our MP has been promising, but nothing has changed.”
Salima CDF woes
On our visit to Traditional Authority Kambwiri in Salima District, within the Salima South Constituency, we found an unfinished school block at Mtemeiti Primary school.
Construction began in 2023, but the project remains incomplete two years later. According to ADC chairperson Paulo Katambo, the community was excluded from the project from the outset and remains unaware of its budget.
Said Katambo: “We have no idea how much was budgeted for it, how many bags of cement were used or how many iron sheets were purchased.
“What I can tell you is that the windows installed are unsuitable for a school, they are meant for a house. Currently, the roof is on, but flooring and plastering remain unfinished.”
Katambo also reported similar issues at Lifidzi Primary School where a separate block faced lengthy delays.
In Traditional Authority Maganga, maintenance work was carried out at Maganga Clinic using K54 million. However, ADC chairperson Lot Banda said the quality of the work is unsatisfactory.
He claimed that they only painted some old and corroded iron sheets instead of replacing them as required.
“The money was not used properly. As a committee, we raised these concerns with our MP and council officials, but the issue was simply ignored,” he said.
Similar stories were recorded in other parts of the constituency
In Nsanje, Bishop Henry Zongoloti, a member of Nsanje Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in highlighting the need to follow the CDF money, acknowledged gaps in the implementation of projects in some constituencies.
He said: “We had some gaps on how the projects are implemented. The process of identifying potential contractors, procurement process and others and the period of implementation which is 90 days while other projects are taking more than seven years.”
Sinos Lyson, a member of Malemia ADC noted that some projects, which are still not finalised, are officially reported as complete.
“For instance, we have our Malemia Under-Five Clinic, which was constructed in the 2022/ 2023 fiscal year. This project cost taxpayers about K14 million from the CDF basket, but due to devaluation we understand that K40 million was channelled to this project.”
“The project is sub-standard because there was no implementation project committee to monitor it. The facility has lost its two doors to thieves. Our mothers are travelling about eight kilometres to access health services at Nsanje District Hospital and yet we have a facility which is not utilised,” he said.
Nsanje District director of public works Danstain Mphonde said the project was allocated K14. 9 million in 2017 and received an additional K16 million in 2024, but denied allegations that allocation was increased to K40 million.
Ghost projects and collapsing bridge
The problem extends beyond simple neglect and the misuse of funds is not an accident; it is a system-wide failure.
The most shocking example may be the Ndete Bridge in Mangochi, which collapsed just two months after its inauguration despite consuming K47 million in CDF funds.
A former councillor blamed the collapse on a heavy truck, but Nice Trust programme officer Joseph Chamambala was not convinced.
“Was the bridge built to standard? Were enough materials used? Was the contractor competent? The answer to all these questions is ‘no’,” he said.
This mismanagement is widespread. A 2023 study found that in Mzimba and Nkhata Bay, MPs completely dominated project decision-making, side-lining community priorities and channelling projects toward political supporters.
An official from the National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC), who spoke on condition of anonymity, concluded: “The way Malawi’s CDF is designed makes abuse predictable.”
(Additional Reporting by Ayamba Kandodo and Martin Gela Jnr)
