Civil Society Education Coalition- CSEC

CALL FOR CONSULTANTS
The Malawi Accelerator Programme (MAP) is inviting applications from qualified consultants and consulting firms for two exciting assignments aimed at accelerating action to end child marriage in Malawi.

𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫-𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲
Support the design of a comprehensive advocacy and communication strategy that strengthens policy influence, promotes investment, advances girls' rights, and supports implementation of the National Strategy to End Child Marriage.

https://www.cyecemw.org/.../Terms-of-Reference-for-MAP...
𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞, 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 (𝐊𝐀𝐏) 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲
Lead the development and implementation of a baseline study that will generate critical evidence on child marriage, stakeholder coordination, leadership, social norms, and community structures.

https://www.cyecemw.org/.../MAP-Baseline-Terms-of...
We are looking for experienced professionals with expertise in research, advocacy, policy influence, social development, gender equality, monitoring and evaluation, and child rights programming.

Application Deadline: 12 June 2026
Submit applications to: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])

Together, we can strengthen evidence, advocacy, and collective action to end child marriage and advance girls' rights in Malawi.

visit WWW.CYECEMW.ORG/VACANCIES for more

CALL FOR CONSULTANTS

The Malawi Accelerator Programme (MAP) is inviting applications from qualified consultants and consulting firms for two exciting assignments aimed at accelerating action to end child marriage in Malawi.

𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫-𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲

Support the design of a comprehensive advocacy and communication strategy that strengthens policy influence, promotes investment, advances girls' rights, and supports implementation of the National Strategy to End Child Marriage.

https://www.cyecemw.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Terms-of-Reference-for-MAP-Advocacy-Strategy.pdf

𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞, 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 (𝐊𝐀𝐏) 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲

Lead the development and implementation of a baseline study that will generate critical evidence on child marriage, stakeholder coordination, leadership, social norms, and community structures.

https://www.cyecemw.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/MAP-Baseline-Terms-of-Reference.pdf

We are looking for experienced professionals with expertise in research, advocacy, policy influence, social development, gender equality, monitoring and evaluation, and child rights programming.

Application Deadline: 12 June 2026

Submit applications to: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])

Together, we can strengthen evidence, advocacy, and collective action to end child marriage and advance girls' rights in Malawi.

visit WWW.CYECEMW.ORG/VACANCIES for more

Today, we proudly join the rest of the continent in commemorating Africa Day celebrating the richness of our cultures, the strength of our people, and the promise of Africa’s future.

At CSEC this day speaks directly to our mission and vision. We are committed to advocating for inclusive, equitable, and quality education for all, ensuring that every child regardless of background, gender, or ability has access to meaningful learning opportunities. Our vision is of an empowered and educated society where citizens actively contribute to sustainable development and social transformation.

As we reflect on Africa’s journey, we recognise that education remains the foundation upon which the continent’s future will be built. A future driven by informed, skilled, and confident young people who can shape resilient communities and thriving nations.

Today, we celebrate not only who we are as Africans, but also the collective responsibility we carry to invest in education, amplify community voices, and strengthen systems that leave no one behind.

Together let us continue building an Africa and Malawi where every learner matters, every voice counts, and every dream is valid.

Happy Africa Day!

Great opportunity for young Malawians Centre for Youth Empowerment and Civic Education - CYECE

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
Ready to represent Malawi in a regional youth exchange programme?

The ESA Regional Youth Exchange on SRHR 2026 is now open for applications. Young people aged 18–35 will have the opportunity to work with youth-led organizations in Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia while building skills in advocacy, leadership, SRHR, and community engagement.

If you are passionate about youth development and creating change, this opportunity is for you.

FULL APPLICATION DOCUMENT
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1y7dkXgY29otmTZPX_we6NT7pPEXNM2a2/view?usp=sharing

LETTER TO DR. HASTINGS KAMUZU BANDA

Dear Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda,

Today, Malawi remembers you again. Some will remember you with admiration. Others with pain. Many with mixed emotions. But whether one agrees with every chapter of your rule or not, one truth remains difficult to erase: you built a nation with a sense of direction.

You understood the power of education. Not just access to education, but quality education. Education rooted in excellence, discipline, productivity, and responsibility. Schools were places of learning and order. Teachers were respected. Students respected themselves, their teachers, and public institutions. Today, many of our schools have become centres of disorder. Vandalism is increasing. Drug abuse is rising. Sexual violence is becoming normalised. Respect is disappearing.

You taught a generation that hard work mattered. Teachers sacrificed their time for students. Students believed effort was the bridge to success. Education was not approached casually. It was pursued with seriousness and purpose. Today, many seek shortcuts. Commitment is fading. Excellence is no longer celebrated enough. Mediocrity has slowly become acceptable.
Under your leadership, schools operated like communities. Teachers supported one another. Students learned together. Communities protected schools because schools belonged to the people. There was competition, yes, but not competition driven by greed, bitterness, or selfishness. We have since become a society where individual success matters more than collective progress.

You invested in infrastructure because you understood that environment shapes learning. The classrooms, teachers’ houses, roads, and institutions built during your era still stand today as reminders of planning and vision. Yes, enrolment has grown and demands have changed, but many schools today are collapsing physically and morally. Some learners sit on floors. Others learn under trees. In some places, hope itself is absent.

You also understood the dignity of teachers. Government honoured its obligation to pay teachers, even where resources were limited. Delays were explained. Leadership felt accountable. Today, salaries delay without explanation. Promotions are delayed for years. Merit has been replaced by patronage. Hardworking teachers are overlooked while politically connected individuals are rewarded. This has damaged morale. A demoralised teacher cannot inspire a nation.

Dr. Banda, perhaps one of the most difficult truths to admit is that your four cornerstones unity, loyalty, obedience, and discipline helped shape the foundation of our nationhood and education system.

We may debate the methods. We may reject excesses. We may criticise parts of your rule. But we cannot deny that Malawi once had a stronger sense of national identity, order, public service, and collective responsibility.

Today, leadership is increasingly driven by self-interest. Public service has become personalised. Politics divides more than it unites. Institutions are weaker. Accountability is selective. Citizens are losing trust in leadership and in one another.
Yet this letter is not written to glorify the past blindly. It is written to challenge the present honestly.

Nations are not built through slogans. They are built through sacrifice, discipline, courage, integrity, and visionary leadership. Malawi desperately needs these values again. Not dictatorship. Not fear. But leadership anchored in service, accountability, patriotism, merit, and love for country.

You left many scars. But you also left many lessons. And perhaps that is why, decades after your passing, Malawi still pauses every 14th May to remember you. Because history has a strange way of forcing nations to confront what they have lost, what they have become, and what they still can be.

May your soul continue to rest in peace.

Our schools should be safe havens for learning but are they?

Recent reports highlighted by The Nation reveal a worrying reality: vandalism, theft, and violence are turning some of Malawi’s public schools into unsafe environments.

As Civil Society Education Coalition, we are deeply concerned.

When classrooms are broken into, when laboratories are stripped, when solar systems and sanitation facilities are stolen it is not just infrastructure that is lost. It is opportunity. It is the future of our children.

With only 21% of secondary schools fenced nationwide, the risks remain high. As efforts by the Ministry of Education Science and Technology Malawi continue to expand access to education, we must also ensure that schools are protected.

What role do you think communities should play in protecting our schools from vandalism and theft?

Let’s talk. Your voice matters.

Honoring a Visionary Legacy

On this Kamuzu Day, Civil Society Education Coalition (CSEC) joins the nation in celebrating the extraordinary life and enduring legacy of the founding father of Malawi, Ngwazi Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda.

Dr. Banda's conviction that "Education is the key to progress" wasn't just a slogan it was the blueprint for our nation. By establishing robust educational infrastructure, from primary schools to the legendary Kamuzu Academy and various teacher training colleges, he ignited a flame of knowledge that continues to light our path today

Happy Easter from Civil Society Education Coalition-CSEC!

As we celebrate this season of renewal and hope, we reaffirm our commitment to fostering a bright future through inclusive and quality education for every learner. May this holiday bring you peace, joy, and the inspiration to continue advocating for a better tomorrow.

Wishing you and your family a blessed and restful Easter!

On this solemn Good Friday, we join all Malawians in reflecting on the values of sacrifice, compassion, and hope.

As Civil Society Education Coalition (CSEC), we are reminded of the importance of unity and service as we continue advocating for inclusive, equitable, and quality education for all.

May this day inspire renewed commitment to building a better future for every learner.

Wishing you a peaceful and reflective Good Friday.

At CSEC, We believe that collaborative advocacy is essential to strengthening education financing in Malawi.

In partnership with our coalition members ActionAid Malawi Oxfam in Malawi, Forum for African Women Educationalists in Malawi - fawema , and Sightsavers we convened a strategic engagement with Members of Parliament from the Budget & Finance and Education Cluster Committees in Lilongwe.

The meeting, held at Crossroads Hotel in Lilongwe, provided an opportunity to share findings from a joint education expenditure tracking exercise conducted across six districts: Balaka, Mchinji, Mzimba, Lilongwe, Ntcheu, and Machinga.

Key insights shared with Members of Parliament included:

a. 77% of the 2025/26 education budget has been disbursed
b. The proposed K1.3 trillion education budget remains below the 20% global benchmark for education investment
c. Significant infrastructure and learning resource gaps persist across schools

Our Executive Director Benedicto Kondowe highlighted the need to strengthen education investment, urging Parliament to allocate 10% of the expanded Constituency Development Fund (CDF) toward improving education infrastructure and learning conditions.

The engagement reflects our collective commitment, as civil society partners, to promote accountability, transparency, and sustainable financing in the education sector.

Together with our coalition partners, we remain committed to ensuring that education investments contribute meaningfully to achieving the goals of Malawi 2063 and improving learning outcomes for all learners. Global Campaign for EducationGlobal Partnership for Education Tilitonse Foundation