A majority of Malawians who have heard of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) say  politicians benefit more from the fund than ordinary citizens do, and most want local stakeholder committees to manage it instead of members of Parliament (MPs), according to  an Afrobarometer survey. 

Public opinion aligns strongly with this week’s landmark judgement in which Malawi’s Constitutional Court declared the current arrangement of the CDF – specifically, the  involvement of MPs and the voting rights they have enjoyed in managing the fund – unconstitutional.  

Survey findings show that fewer than four in 10 Malawians have heard of the CDF. Among  those who have, a slim majority say it should be abolished. Assuming the CDF is continued, an overwhelming majority say the use of the funds should be determined by constituency  committees rather than MPs. Two-thirds support the 2024 increase to K200 million per constituency.  

In general, citizens are most likely to point to grassroots committees as best placed to  manage community development initiatives, although one-fourth think MPs should do the  job.