The Federation of Disability Organisations in Malawi (FEDOMA) has criticized the newly formulated Constituency Development Fund (CDF) guidelines, saying they are not inclusive of persons with disabilities.

FEDOMA Executive Director Simon Munde told Capital Online on Tuesday that the guidelines are not aligned with policy and legal frameworks that ensure the inclusion of persons with disabilities in various development initiatives.

Munde observed: “The guidelines have allocated K100 million to youths and women from the K5 billion allocated to each constituency, but nothing has been earmarked for the development of persons with disabilities. That is a concern to us. The CDF committee has no representation of persons with disabilities, and one wonders who will speak for us on development issues.”

He fears that the current CDF guidelines threaten the realization of Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, which stipulates that no one should be left behind in development efforts.

Munde has since disclosed that FEDOMA will engage the Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralization on the need to amend the guidelines to ensure that persons with disabilities are included in the management of the development funds.