The Council for Non-Governmental Organisations in Malawi (Congoma) has said some local NGOs are struggling to fulfil financial compliance requirements due to funding challenges they are sailing through.
In an interview yesterday following revelations by NGO Regulatory Authority (Ngora) showing that NGOs continue to fall short on annual reporting requirements with compliance remaining below 70 percent, Congoma chairperson George Jobe said the situation should not be construed as deliberate.
He said some organisations cannot afford to engage auditors and mobilise regulatory fees while others have failed to secure new funding.
“Separating the requirement for report submission to be done alongside annual payments could improve compliance,” said Jobe.
But he acknowledged that some NGOs have the resources to comply but deliberately fail to do so.
According to Ngora acting director of registration and compliance Patrick Mwale, the year ending December 2025 shows that 67 percent of the 1 000 active NGOs in the country had submitted their annual reports as of yesterday, leaving more than 300 yet to comply.
The data reflect a pattern of incomplete compliance in recent years. In 2025, the compliance rate stood at 61 percent while 52 percent of active NGOs submitted their reports in 2024.
Between 2016 and 2021, compliance rate remained below 45 percent with 2021 registering the highest 43 percent while 2016 registered five percent.
Mwale yesterday said the authority has been using various measures against non-compliant organisations, including recommending that stakeholders refrain from dealing with them.
He said the stakeholders include local councils, banks and the Malawi Revenue Authority.
“We have not previously issued fines, but we have made the recommendations in the past, which can be stronger because these organisations cannot operate effectively without dealing with stakeholders such as councils,” said Mwale.
However, he acknowledged that some NGOs continue operating despite the measures and said the regulator plans to publish a list of non-compliant organisations next month.
Governance analyst Benedicto Kondowe said persistent non-compliance could weaken transparency, public confidence and the credibility of the NGO sector.
He urged Ngora to assess whether its enforcement and compliance-support mechanisms are sufficiently effective.
Under the NGO Act, NGOs are required to submit annual reports accompanied by audited financial statements within six months of the end of their financial year.
The regulations provide for a K1 million fine for non-compliance and allow Ngora not to renew the licence of an organisation that fails to submit annual reports for three consecutive years.
The 2025 NGO Sector Report showed the sector collectively recorded K1 trillion in income, with the 20 highest-funded NGOs receiving K587 billion.
