President Lazarus Chakwera officially launched his 2025 campaign yesterday, unveiling a sweeping new manifesto anchored on five strategic pillars aimed at completing the development path he began in 2020.
Before thousands of Malawi Congress Party (MCP) supporters at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe, the President pledged ambitious reforms, including the creation of three million youth jobs, the transformation of the National Economic Empowerment Fund (Neef) into a development bank, and a bold new initiative—the “Tsogolo Account”—which promises K500 000 savings for all children born in Malawi.
He also committed to abolishing city chief executive officer positions (CEOs) in favour of directly elected executive mayors and reserving four Cabinet seats for leaders under 35, aiming to elevate youth voices in policy-making.
“Judge me not by perfection, but by persistence,” Chakwera told the crowd, emphasizing challenges his administration faced—Covid-19 disruptions, global market shocks, and natural disasters—while defending his record of resilience and national progress.
He recited his 2020 vote tally by district to reinforce his broad mandate and cited accomplishments such as security promotions, the National Cancer Centre and anti-corruption prosecutions.
However, the President conceded that not all 2020 promises had materialised, asking voters to grant him another five-year term to “scale up what works and fix what hasn’t.
“I am asking you to give me another five-year mandate to complete the work we began. We now have a clearer map and greater experience to deliver more, faster and better,” Chakwera said.
The new MCP manifesto, spanning 72 points, is built on five pillars: food security, job creation, wealth creation, governance reform and improved public service delivery.
As the September 16 General Election draws closer, the MCP faces stiff opposition competition, but Chakwera insisted his party remains best-placed to lead Malawi into a stable and prosperous future.
“We are not starting from scratch,” he said. “We are building on a strong foundation and the next five years will be about scaling up what works and fixing what hasn’t.”
But not everyone is buying into the renewed promises with political analyst George Chaima reacting cautiously to the manifesto. He warned that many pledges echo previous unmet commitments.
He questioned the feasibility of the job creation target and described ongoing food insecurity and public sector inefficiencies as signs of systemic failure.
“Manifesto on paper is different from practical action on the ground,” Chaima said.
“We talked about food security for the past five years which MCP has been in power, and yet the country remains high on food deficit.”
He contrasted the current government’s approach with the Kamuzu Banda era, saying: “Food security has now turned into a money-making jackpot by politicians, unlike in the past when Kamuzu meant what he said through practical strategic policies.”
Chaima endorsed the idea of wealth creation “if it means creating wealth opportunities for all” and described the governance pillar as a step in the right direction, especially “for a failing State full of corrupt leaders”.
Still, he was skeptical about the feasibility of the three million jobs pledge, given what he described as missed opportunities during Chakwera’s first term.
“The party failed to create the landscape for diversified investments and improving trade. I see this becoming a repeat of a lie if it fails again,” he said.
On public service delivery, Chaima argued that weak motivation among civil servants and politicised recruitment practices continue to undermine government performance.
“If salaries remain low, corruption goes higher. If nepotism becomes the order of the day, recruitment based on merit becomes a challenge. Therefore, performance and work output becomes an issue.”
Summing up his reaction, Chaima said: “The MCP has failed marginally to live up to its promises on these pillars,” adding that Malawians deserve honest leadership that prioritises action over slogans.
