President Peter Mutharika has announced the cancellation of almost all school-related fees to fulfil a key campaign promise he made during September’s presidential election. In a statement, the president said, "no public school should be requesting learners to make contributions towards the School Development Fund and any other fees, except boarding fees".

The move is expected to increase enrollment and lower the drop-out rate, although the latter is said to have decreased significantly compared to previous years. The country has a primary school completion rate of 52%.

Malawi is grappling with an economic crisis, which has seen the cost of goods and services soar. Some experts have said that although the announcement brings hope, they question how the government will implement the new policy, given that resource limitations also affected the previous administration.