Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Balaka District held an interface meeting with the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) Limited on Wednesday, 11 March 2026, to address ongoing electricity supply challenges and gain a better understanding of ESCOM’s interventions in the district.
The meeting brought together key stakeholders, including representatives from the Malawi Police Service (MPS), the District Commissioner’s Office, community members and business owners.
Balaka District Commissioner, Bibu Yusuf Mdala, emphasized the critical role of reliable electricity in driving the district’s economic and social development. He noted that his office continues to receive numerous complaints regarding prolonged power outages, slow response times to fault resolution, and delays in processing new electricity connections.
“We cannot discuss development without electricity. Frequent outages disrupt schools, hospitals and businesses. Communities are frustrated by the long delays in repairing reported faults and connecting new applicants. A more coordinated and efficient approach is urgently needed,” Mdala said.
CSO Network Chairperson, Charles Sineta, said the meeting was important for communities and stakeholders to appreciate ESCOM’s efforts while also raising persistent concerns.
He explained that while communities understand scheduled load-shedding, unscheduled and recurrent blackouts have become increasingly common, severely affecting essential services such as water supply.
Responding to the concerns, ESCOM’s Acting Chief Area Engineer, Martin Mbwandira, acknowledged the challenges and attributed them to stormy weather and heavy rains that have affected many parts of the country, including Balaka, often leading to the collapse of power lines.
“We experienced challenges with the pre-rainy season maintenance this year due to procurement bottlenecks, which prevented us from strengthening the network as planned. However, we are working hard to resolve these issues and reinforce the system to provide uninterrupted power supply to our customers,” he said.
Mbwandira added that ESCOM plans to conduct a comprehensive network assessment and carry out preventative maintenance in the district soon.
Mbwandira said customers whose applications remained outstanding after the conclusion of the Malawi Electricity Access Project (MEAP) will soon be connected once ESCOM rolls out the Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformation (ASCENT) Project.
“It is true that we have some customers who applied for electricity but have not yet been connected. These customers will be prioritized once the ASCENT Project is rolled out,” he said.
The ASCENT Project, supported by the World Bank, is designed to expand electricity access across Malawi through new grid connections and other energy access initiatives.
ESCOM Acting Senior Public Relations Officer, Cosmas Kaunga, outlined broader national efforts aimed at improving electricity supply, including the Mozambique-Malawi (MOMA) Interconnector Project and the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project at Kanengo in Lilongwe, which are expected to enhance power supply and improve grid stability.
“Electricity is a basic need. We are reinforcing our systems and processes to improve power reliability and expand electricity access,” he said.
Kaunga further noted that vandalism, particularly of transformers, conductors and poles, remains a major nationwide challenge. He explained that a significant proportion of transformers procured by the Corporation are used to replace vandalized ones instead of connecting new customers, affecting millions of Malawians.
“Engaging key stakeholders through forums like this helps us find collective solutions and protect electricity supply to critical facilities such as hospitals and schools hence support the economic development of our country,” he said.