After election win, Mutharika introduces free education to address Malawi’s learning crisis
Malawi will begin offering free education for all primary and secondary students starting January 2026 as it aims to improve literacy levels in the country.
President Peter Mutharika, in outlining the new education reforms, said the government will remove tuition fees, examination fees, school development fees, and identity card charges used during examinations.
“I also want to direct that no public school should be requesting learners to make contributions towards the School Development Fund and any other fees, except boarding fees,” Mutharika announced.
The 85-year-old returned to office after winning the September 16 presidential election with 66% of the vote.
While day school students will benefit fully from the waiver, those attending boarding schools will still be required to pay boarding fees, which remain significant.
The government expects this policy to boost enrolment and reduce drop-out rates. Although there has been progress in primary education drop-out rates—falling from 11.7% in 2009 to 3.2% in 2018—retention remains a concern. Malawi has a primary school completion rate of 52%and a repetition rate of 24.5%.
In 2024, 24,371 students dropped out of both primary and secondary schools. Data from Malawi’s Nation newspaper shows that only 33% of children complete primary school, while just 4% finish upper secondary school.
President Mutharika, who previously served from 2014 to 2020, was re-elected to address the economic challenges that worsened under the administration of Lazarus Chakwera.
After taking office in 2020, Chakwera oversaw an economy that saw inflation rise to 33%. The prices of food, maize, and fertiliser increased, contributing to a rise in poverty.
“The [previous] government has not been able to mobilise enough revenue to implement its programmes. Overall growth projection remains weak, with GDP projected to grow at 2.8% in 2025 from 1.7% in 2024, mainly attributed to low agricultural productivity, supply chain constraints and limited industrial capacity,” Mutharika said.
He noted that his administration has already begun taking steps to address these challenges.
The World Bank reports that Malawi has one of the top four highest poverty rates worldwide, with 70% of its population living on less than $2.15 daily, according to a 2019 household survey.
Poverty has risen by three million since 2010, totalling 13 million people in 2019.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
