EU increases funds for tripartite elections
In an effort to have free and fair 2014 Tripartite Elections, the European Union (EU) has increased its funding to Malawi from K875 million (US$2 187 500) to K2.9 billion (US$7 250 000).
The increase is a reallocation within the envelope that EU committed to providing to Malawi.
EU Ambassador and Head of Delegation to Malawi Alexander Baum said during the signing ceremony that EU wants Malawians to have credible elections which will result in the choice of legitimate leaders.
“Given the significance of free and credible elections for Malawi’s democratisation process, and the complexity of holding tripartite elections, EU decided to increase its financial support towards preparations for these elections,” said Baum.
Minister of Finance Maxwell Mkwezalamba signed the agreement on behalf of government.
He commended EU for the support and assured it that the money will be put to its intended use.
He said: “I assure the EU that the resources will benefit the nation. It will not be like what has happened at Capital Hill where some selfish and misguided individuals have defrauded the government of huge sums of money that could otherwise have been used to provide public goods.”
According to Baum, the funds will be managed through the Elections Trust Fund, a multi-donor basket fund managed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
“With this increase in financial resources, the Malawi Electoral Commission [MEC] will be able to plan, conduct and supervise polls in 2014 better. The money will also be used to buy electoral-related materials and equipment,” said Baum.
Apart from the increase to the elections contribution, the amendment to the Financing Agreement also increases the allocation to National Initiative for Civic Education (Nice) Trust thereby bringing the total amount of funding to Nice Trust to K4.7 billion from an initial allocation. The amendment further adds K522 million to technical assistance.
