MISA Malawi joins the world in commemorating the International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI) with a call for the government to address problems affecting citizens’ access to relevant and accurate information to combat disinformation.
We believe easy and timely access to accurate and reliable public information is key to combating false information, which is rampant, especially on social media.
On September 28 every year, the world commemorates IDUAI to raise awareness about the importance of the right to seek, receive, and impart information. In 2026, the theme for the day is, “Upholding Information Integrity in the Digital Age: The role of access to information in addressing information disorder.”
In Malawi, the ATI Act, 2017, the law that provides a framework for the realisation of Section 37 of the Constitution on access to information, became operational on September 30, 2020.
The Constitution and the ATI Act give citizens the legal right to access information held by public institutions and relevant private bodies.
While MISA Malawi acknowledges some steps taken by government in the past six years to ensure implementation of the law, unprepared and unwilling institutional systems and individuals in government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) render access to relevant and credible information challenging. Lack or limited access to credible information is leaving room for the creation and circulation of false information.
Reports by both the Human Rights Commission (MHRC), the body legally designated to oversee implementation of the ATI Law, and non-state actors are not encouraging.
For example, a monitoring exercise conducted by the Commission in January 2026 across 58 institutions in seven districts found that 29 (about 50%) of the institutions monitored had designated Information Officers. Just 17 (29.31%) had copies of the ATI Act and Regulations, with five institutions (8.62%) having information manuals and only six (10.34%) having a specific ATI budget.
The exercise also found that 11 out of 58 institutions (19.97%) had websites meeting minimum ATI requirements. Nine of the institutions (15.52%) had information guides and only seven (12.07%) had submitted their Information Officers’ names to the Ministry of Information with the same number submitting annual reports.
Worse still, the exercise revealed that staff in the monitored institutions had no knowledge of the Act and they were using information formats that did not meet the needs of people with disabilities.
The Access to Information (ATI) Act Regulations empower the Minister of Information to publish names of information officers. ATI Act Regulation 3(3) states that “the Minister shall publish names of information officers in at least two newspapers of nationwide circulation at the beginning of each financial year”.
However, since the operationalisation of the Act, the minister only published names of some information officers in December 2023.
We therefore call for immediate and consistent publication of names of all information officers to ensure that citizens know who to contact in the different institutions with compliance obligations under the Act.
Government has an obligation to ensure that public institutions improve compliance, Information Officers are well-trained, that institutions provide information proactively, and ensure accessibility, including for people facing language or disability barriers.
Citizens also need greater awareness of their ‘right to know,’ and the national budget should fund public awareness campaigns.
MISA Malawi believes strengthening and realising access to information means moving beyond enactment of legislations and ensuring effective implementation for the benefit of the nation.
