Public Policy Evaluation in Malawi - Substantive or Procedural?

Malawi desire to be a middle-income country by 2063 as envisioned in the Vision 2063. To achieve this status, there is need for public services that are fit for purpose, results oriented and high performing to facilitate a positive transformation and modernization of the economy. Pertinent to the agenda would be successful public policy evaluation to ensure that government institutions, programmes and projects are well structured into process-results-feedback approach. This article sought to analyse the effectiveness of current Malawi’s public sector evaluation policies. Empirical literature revealed that Malawi’s Performance Management System (PMS) has failed to address its objectives. Very few public sectors managed to attempt the system, such as the ministry education, but found it hard to effectively implement the policy largely due lack of knowledge among supervisors. This article, therefore, recommends that each public sector institution should be responsible at the expense of its managers to identify policy evaluation systems that are compatible with the professional qualification of the majority of its workers