Malawi
National Assembly
-
Political system
Political systems: Presidential, Parliamentary, Presidential-Parliamentary, Monarchy, Communist, Transitional.
View field in the data dictionary -
Presidential system
-
Structure of parliament
Structure of parliament: Unicameral, bicameral
View field in the data dictionary -
Unicameral
-
IPU membership
Current membership status
View field in the data dictionary -
Yes
Data on women
Information on the current and historical representation of women in the parliament. Consult the 'Elections' tab to see how women have fared in elections or renewals.
Current representation
Women's representation in the current parliament or chamber
-
Current number of members
Number of members who currently hold seats in parliament. May be lower or higher than the statutory number of members.
View field in the data dictionary -
193
-
Women
The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
View field in the data dictionary -
40
-
Percentage of women
Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
View field in the data dictionary -
20.7%
Speaker
- Speaker
-
Catherine Gotani Hara (Female)
Date of birth: 04 Apr 1974 - Additional information
-
Elected on 19 June 2019.
Secretary general
- Secretary General
-
Fiona Kalemba (Female)
Chairs of specialized bodies
| Specialized body | Theme | Name | Sex | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finance Committee | Finance | Gladys Ganda | Female | 51 |
Data on age at the start of the legislature
Number of members, by age (2019-06)
| 18 - 20 | 21 - 30 | 31 - 40 | 41 - 45 | 46 - 50 | 51 - 60 | 61 - 70 | 71 - 80 | 81 - 90 | 91 and over | Totals per gender | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 0 | 4 | 36 | 33 | 22 | 41 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 142 |
| Female | 0 | 1 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 |
| Totals per age interval | 0 | 5 | 45 | 44 | 30 | 48 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 181 |
| Total <= 45: 94 | Total >= 46: 87 | ||||||||||
| Age at the last election or renewal | Overall | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.8% | 2.2% | 0.6% | |
| 27.6% | 22% | 5.5% | |
| 51.9% | 40% | 11.6% |
Reserved seats and quotas
-
There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
Reserved seats are a means to ensure the parliamentary representation of certain groups in society.
View field in the data dictionary -
No
-
Electoral quota for women
Quotas to promote gender-balanced representation in parliament
View field in the data dictionary -
Yes
Notes: Some political parties allocate/reserve a certain percentage of seats for women.
Sources:
United Democratic Front (UDF) aims to have 25 percent of its parliamentary seats held by women, according to the party constitution.
Malawi Congress Party [MCP] aims to allocate 33 percent of the seats to women at all levels of the party structure. according to the party Manifesto, women should occupy 30 per cent or more of all decision, policy and managerial positions in the government" (MCP Manifesto of 2004, article 6.6a)
First woman in parliament
-
Year of first woman in parliament
Year in which the first woman entered parliament
View field in the data dictionary -
1964
First woman speaker
-
Year of first woman speaker
Date at which, for the first time in the country's parliamentary history, a woman became Presiding Officer of Parliament or of one of its Houses.
View field in the data dictionary -
2019
Women’s suffrage
-
Date of independence
For countries that become independent after 1940.
View field in the data dictionary -
1964
-
Women’s right to vote
Year in which women obtained the right to vote. More than one year may be displayed depending on the status of the right: restricted or universal and changes in status.
View field in the data dictionary -
1964
-
Restricted or universal suffrage
Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
View field in the data dictionary -
Universal
Notes: Prior to independence, under British administration, women were granted the right to vote under the constitution of 1961. This right was confirmed at independence.
-
Women's right to stand for election
Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election. More than one year may be displayed based on the status of the right: restricted or universal and shifts to the status.
View field in the data dictionary -
1964
-
Restricted or universal
Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
View field in the data dictionary -
No information available
Notes: Prior to independence, under British administration, women were granted the right to vote and stand for election under the constitution of 1961. These rights was confirmed at independence.
Women's caucus
Women's caucuses or parliamentary groups that bring together women parliamentarians to strengthen cooperation and amplify their voices. For other parliamentary bodies or committees that have a specific mandate to address gender equality matters, see the ‘Specialized body – Gender equality’ tab.