President Mutharika’s No-Fee Decree: A Step Towards Genuine Educational Equality

By Kassim Kajosolo

When President Peter Mutharika directed that government schools should stop collecting school and developmental fees from learners—except for boarding fees—the announcement ignited debate across Malawi’s social and educational landscape. Critics dismissed the move as impractical and populist, while supporters welcomed it as long-overdue relief for ordinary Malawian families. Yet, when examined carefully, the directive stands out as one of the most consequential policy decisions in Malawi’s education sector.

The decree reasserts the country’s commitment to free and inclusive education and lifts a long-standing burden many families have quietly endured: the struggle to pay levies in public schools meant to be free. Education has long been recognised as society’s greatest equaliser. The introduction of free primary education in 1994 under Malawi’s first democratic president, Bakili Muluzi, opened classrooms to millions of children previously denied learning opportunities. While transformative, that policy became strained over time.

In the years that followed, the promise of “free education” was steadily diluted. Schools imposed so-called developmental fees, often justified as necessary for infrastructure or materials. In practice, these charges became decisive barriers. A child’s continued attendance depended less on ability and more on whether parents could raise a few thousand kwacha each term.

President Mutharika’s decree is therefore a necessary corrective. For many Malawians, these “small” fees were anything but small. In rural areas, families survive on less than K2,000 a day. When schools demanded K5,000 or K10,000 per term per child, parents faced impossible choices between education and food. As a result, countless learners dropped out, were repeatedly sent home, or had report cards withheld.

Such practices contradicted Malawi’s constitutional guarantee of free primary education and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4, which calls for inclusive and equitable education. By abolishing these fees, the President reaffirmed a fundamental principle: education is a right, not a privilege.

Beyond its moral weight, free education is a sound economic investment. Malawi’s future depends on a literate, productive population. With nearly half the population under 18, expanding access to education strengthens foundations for growth, governance, and innovation.

The directive also addresses inequalities between urban and rural schools. Removing developmental fees shifts responsibility to government, creating an opportunity to equalise access nationwide. While concerns about school financing are valid, solutions lie in stronger public funding, accountability, and partnerships—not exclusion.

Ultimately, the no-fee decree is an act of social justice. It restores dignity, reopens classroom doors, and affirms that Malawi’s future will be shaped not by parental wealth, but by children’s potential.