Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Charles Mhango has called for professionalism in his ministry and newly launched Companies, Registrations and Intellectual Property Centre (Cripc) to serve Malawians better.
The minister said yesterday in Lilongwe during the launch of Cripc, which replaces the Department of the Registrar General under his ministry, that the institution is now a semi-autonomous agency with legal personality and financial autonomy to improve efficiency in delivering services central to business activity, industrialisation and socio-economic transformation.
Mhango said that since he became minister, he has noticed unprofessional conduct in service delivery including at Cripc where he made an unannounced visit and found that some employees had not reported for work by 9.30am.
He said such forms of unprofessionalism result in inefficiencies that not only frustrate clients but also undermine investments in reform and retard economic growth and development.
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Said Mhango: “I noticed when I became minister that there are elements of unprofessional conduct of not respecting timelines. I would like to request the staff and management out of the centre now to be more efficient and to be effective and respect timelines for reporting lunch as well as the knocking off times.”
On the centre, the minister said the successful digitalisation of services through the Malawi Business Registration System (MBRS) which allows businesses to register and maintain records online is expected to improve efficiency.
Cripc registrar Chikumbutso Namelo said the institution is committed to supporting entrepreneurs, assisting government in the formalisation of businesses and promoting intellectual property in the country’s creative sector.
He said despite migrating to online services, the institution still adheres to standards that allow verification of every process.
“Malawi business registry system is integrated with the National Registration Bureau system. For someone to register a business, one needs to have a valid national registration number and the system validates the existence of that ID in the National Registration Bureau database,” said Namelo.
Speaking earlier, Chief Secretary to the Government Justin Saidi said Cripc will help to formalise business transactions.
He expressed satisfaction with the ease of accessing the website which he said will facilitate registrations and improve the ease of doing business in the country.
The Registrar General’s Department transformed into a statutory corporation on April 1, 2026 following amendments to the Business Registration Act in 2025.
The agency is mandated to administer business registration, intellectual property and civil registry services to enhance efficiency and service delivery.
The office estimates that 20 000 companies are registered in the country annually.
