Malawi

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Capacity Building | Fact finding

Capacity Building

Due to the success of the IBAHRI’s capacity building project with the Malawi Law Society (MLS) in 2004, a second Legal Specialist was placed in Malawi in February 2007 for a six-month period supported by the Open Society Initiative of Southern Africa (OSISA).

During the placement, the legal specialist assisted the Law Society in strengthening relations with both domestic and international funding bodies. The legal specialist also helped MLS develop links with other Bars in the region and continued the training and development of the Law Society’s Executive Director.  Other activities included:

• strengthening the operations of the secretariat;
• developing several CLE programmes;
• helping the MLS to establish a code of conduct for lawyers;
• establishing a bi-monthly newsletter;
• developing links with regional and international legal bodies; and
• monitoring and reporting on developments with regard to advocacy.

The placement of a legal specialist followed the IBAHRI's fact-finding mission in 2002 and a more detailed assessment of the MLS which was undertaken in February 2003.  Recommendations suggested that the MLS should be provided with international assistance to help it in its attempts to reform and develop its activities. An active and professional law society was considered a crucial component in Malawi’s continuing efforts to improve respect for the rule of law.

In March 2003, the MLS at its annual general meeting adopted a strategic plan for the period of 2003 to 2007. The strategic plan recognised the need to improve the operations of the MLS and set out a vision to become an independent, professional and impartial law society that is responsive, effective and active in the safeguarding of the rule of law.

The capacity building project commenced at the beginning of June 2004, with funding from the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa, with the priorities of:

• helping the MLS strengthen the operations of its secretariat, including the training of staff;
• to develop a newsletter to improve communication within the profession;
• to assist the MLS in the review of its governing statute;
• to assist the MLS in its efforts to improve the provision of legal aid to the Malawian population.

C A P A C I T Y  B U I L D I N G

The IBAHRI has conducted projects to build capacity in a number of regions.  Click here for details on the specific countries and capacity building projects. To browse our work by activity, click here.

Fact-finding mission, 2002

In May 2002, the IBAHRI undertook a fact finding mission to Malawi to assess the functioning of the legal system and its compliance with international and regional standards on the rule of law, in particular human rights standards.

Report on a mission to Malawi by the IBA (August 2002)

• Download the full report

F A C T - F I N D I N G  A N D  R A P I D  R E S P O N S E  M I S S I O N S

The IBAHRI conducts visits on a regular basis to countries where there are signs of a deterioration of the rule of law. We are able to respond quickly to sudden changes, such as to legislation or the constitution, which threaten human rights, rule of law or the independence of the judiciary. Click here for details on the countries we have visited. To browse our work by activity, click here.

For further information on our work in Malawi, contact hri@int-bar.org.