Constitution of Malawi 1994 + Public Finance Management Act 13/2022 + National Audit Office Act 15/2022 + Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act 2025

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Malawi's fiscal transparency framework is anchored in a 2022 reform wave -- the Public Finance Management Act 13/2022 and National Audit Office Act 15/2022 replacing 2003-era statutes -- but is scored against the pre-reform baseline reflected in OBS 2021 (20/100, rank 104/120), the lowest score in this batch and among the steepest collapses in IBP OBS history (from 65/100 in 2015). The collapse was caused directly by the 2013 Cashgate IFMIS fraud scandal (MK24 billion diverted), which triggered donor budget-support suspension and a pattern of document non-publication that persisted through the 2019 survey. The Constitution of Malawi 1994 Arts. 172-184 establishes the National Audit Office with an Auditor General appointed by the Parliamentary Public Appointments Committee -- an unusual legislative appointment structure that supports auditor_selection='appointed_independent' and gives MW the strongest audit independence mechanism in the Anglo-SADC cluster. PEFA 2018 confirms this paradox: PI-31=B (PAC is functional) while PI-9=D (documents not published). The PPDA 2025 supersedes the 2017 version (confirmed ppda.mw). Full texts of PFMA 13/2022 and NAO Act 15/2022 remain unavailable -- the 2026 PEFA (Government/WB/FCDO) will be the first post-reform systematic assessment. IMF ECF links external conditionality to reform implementation. OGP member since 2013 (Action Plan 3: 11 commitments, 2025-2029). TI CPI 2025: 34/100. Score: 48 (weak band; +1 vs cluster baseline driven by parliamentary auditor appointment; ceiling depressed by unconfirmed budget timeline and year-end deadline). FY: July 1 - June 30. Currency: MWK.

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