MALAWI

• The website analysis also showed that only the Malawi National
Assembly had updated information on its website.
Category 2: Request for written and oral information
Part 1: Written request for information
• MISA Malawi sent written requests (questionnaires) for
information to all the eight government ministries and
departments sampled for this study.
• Out of the eight government ministries and departments only
the Ministry of Energy and Mines responded to the written
request for information. The response came after five days.
• National Audit Office (NAO) acknowledged receipt of the
questionnaire sent but did not respond; NAO further requested
MISA Malawi to write a letter of justification stating reasons for
requesting the information.
• The Ministry of Information and Civic Education preferred an
electronic copy of the questionnaire addressed to the Director of
Information. The Principal Secretary is the one that asked MISA
Malawi to send the questionnaire to the Director of Information.
The Director of Information did not respond to the request.
• Lilongwe City Council, Blantyre City Council, Ministry of Health,
Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the Malawi
National Assembly did either not respond or acknowledge receipt
of the questionnaire after fourteen days.
• MISA Malawi also hand delivered the requests for information
already sent by either fax or email to all the eight government
ministries and departments sampled.
Part 2: Oral request for information
• Out of the eight sampled institutions only Lilongwe City Council
and Blantyre City Council responded to oral requests for
information.
• National Audit Office, Ministry of Information and Civic Education,
Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, the
Malawi National Assembly kept referring MISA Malawi from one
official to another or requested for an electronic copy or asked
MISA to call them later. All these alternatives did not provide the
information requested.
• Ministry of Energy and Mines already responded to written
request for information and the oral request was merely
procedural and to seek clarity on some information.

23

Select target paragraph3