President Arthur Peter Mutharika held a farewell meeting at Kamuzu Palace with outgoing members of the Malawi Human Rights Commission following the conclusion of their three-year mandate, according to Maravi Express. During the engagement, Mutharika pledged that his administration would increase funding to the commission to resolve financial constraints that have limited its oversight activities. Outgoing MHRC Commissioner Chikondi Chijozi Jere briefed the President on the commission's financial challenges and its recent work in protecting the rights of vulnerable groups and advancing access to public information.
In regional politics, Edith Kachale Banda represented Malawi at the West Africa Women's Political Leadership Forum in Abuja, Nigeria, Malawi24 reports. Serving as the Governance and Political Participation Pillar Co-chair for the African Women Leaders Network in Malawi, Kachale Banda joined other delegates to discuss methods for increasing gender parity. The forum focused on removing obstacles that prevent young women from assuming decision-making roles in political and government structures.
Update: Building on earlier coverage of the Chilima plane crash inquiry, new testimony has surfaced regarding the conditions before the flight. Malawi24 reports that Joseph Moyo, the officer-in-charge at Mzuzu Airport, testified that he lacked formal meteorological certification. He admitted to bypassing certified experts and using his own visual assessment to warn the flight crew that visibility had dropped to five kilometers, effectively altering the weather data relayed to the pilots before the fatal crash. The parliamentary committee continues to gather witness accounts to clarify the circumstances surrounding the disaster.