ACBF Grants Support to the Malawi Polytechnic, University of Malawi

 

On 28 November 2008, in Harare, the African Capacity Building Foundation ACBF) and the Malawi Polytechnic (University of Malawi) signed a Grant Agreement of US$300 000 to support the “Malawi Knowledge Network for Research, Policy and Development (MAKNET)”.

MAKNET was established after the realization that Malawi has an emerging culture of public debate, which is hampered by the absence of a systematic arrangement for channeling the outputs of research, dialogue, and advocacy to influence the policy making process in the country, despite the presence of institutions and organizations involved in research, policy analysis and advocacy work.

The goal of MAKNET is to cultivate a culture of wide consultation through the broadening of access to, and the utilization of, information in the formulation and implementation of development policies and programmes through a knowledge network. The more specific objectives are to: i) mobilize policy experts, academics, professional associations/institutions, public and private sector, civil societies, policy activists and advocates to share and debate developmental issues; ii) provide a knowledge base for development policies through the establishment of a website and database of experts in Malawi, in the region and around the world; iii) provide a platform for debate in the formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development policies and programmes; and iv) promote the utilization of knowledge for development through knowledge dissemination and advocacy.

 

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Dr Edwin N. Forlemu, Acting Executive Secretary of ACBF, expressed the confidence that the grant would serve as a catalyst for fostering a vibrant community of practice in Malawi in order to boost economic development and promote poverty reduction in the country.

In response, Dr Wilson Banda, General Manager (Economics) of the Reserve Bank of Malawi, and Chair of the MAKNET Steering Committee, reiterated the commitment of the Government of Malawi and the Malawi Polytechnic to pursue the objectives of MAKNET and build it into a robust force for change in the country. He expressed the hope that the co-operation between Malawi and ACBF would grow from strength to strength as a result of MAKNET and other ACBF interventions in the country.

 

ACBF has been involved in supporting capacity-building activities in Malawi since 2001. It has funded the National Economic Council (NEC) to the tune of US $1.5 million. In 2005, the National Statistics Office received funding of US $1.2 million, and in May 2007 the ACBF Executive Board awarded US $1.5 million to the Malawi Directorate of Macroeconomic Policy Research and Analysis Project (MPRAP). The grant of US $ 300,000 to set up MAKNET was approved by the Executive Board in December 2007- bringing the cumulative sum of grants to Malawi to US $4.5 million to date.

THE AFRICAN CAPACITY BUILDING FOUNDATION (ACBF)

ACBF is Africa’s premier institution in capacity building established in February 1991. ACBF was the outcome of collaboration between African Governments and the international donor community. The major sponsoring agencies of the Foundation are the African Development Bank (AfDB), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the World Bank. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) became a member in September 2002.
ACBF’s mission is to build sustainable human and institutional capacity for sustainable growth, poverty reduction and good governance on Africa. The Foundation intervenes in six core competency areas - namely economic policy analysis and management, financial management and accountability, strengthening and monitoring of national statistics, public administration and management, strengthening of the policy analysis capacity of national parliaments, professionalization of the voices of the private sector and civil society.
Based in Harare, Zimbabwe, the Foundation currently supports more than 150 projects and programs in at least 40 sub-Saharan African countries. Since 1991, ACBF has committed close to US$390 million to capacity-building interventions.