By Wendy Mkandawire
Malawi Electoral Commission, MEC, Chairperson Justice Anabel Mtalimanja will lead the Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries, ECF-SADC, election observer mission to Zambia’s General Elections scheduled for August 13, 2026
According to a statement from MEC dated July 22, 2026 and signed by Director of Communications Sangwani Mwafulirwa, the Malawi delegation will be in Zambia from August 5 to 16, 2026.
Mwafulirwa said the technical and peer mission will observe key stages of the electoral process, including the campaign period, polling, counting of votes, and the immediate post-election period.
He added that MEC’s leadership of the mission reflects the confidence that ECF-SADC member electoral commissions have in the Malawi Electoral Commission. It also reaffirms MEC’s growing contribution to strengthening democratic governance and advancing electoral integrity across the SADC region.
“Prior to the deployment of the full observer mission, Justice Mtalimanja also led an ECF-SADC pre-election assessment mission to Zambia from May 17 to 22, 2026” Mwafulirwa said.
He said the pre-election assessment mission aimed to evaluate the preparedness of the Electoral Commission of Zambia to conduct credible elections and to assess whether the pre-election environment was conducive to a credible and transparent poll.
The observer mission is expected to comprise chairpersons, election commissioners, and senior election officials drawn from ten ECF-SADC member electoral commissions. These are Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zanzibar, and Zimbabwe.
