The Malawian Human Rights Commission is only just beginning to function at its full capacity, with the appointment of the all the commissioners and staff in late 1999. An unduly long wait on the part of the government to pass enabling legislation and a working budget delayed the creation of the commission.
Although it is too early to tell, the Human Rights Commission in Malawi shows great promise. The enabling legislation is one of the best drafted human rights commission legislation on the African continent, giving the commission broad powers to be effective and autonomous. The two commissioners who drafted the enabling legislation have ensured autonomy, and strong investigative and remedial powers. It is now up to the commissioners to use this legislative license to ensure a greater respect for human rights in Malawi.

The major drawback for the commission is the lack of adequate funding due to structural adjustment budget cuts being put into place by the government in response to pressure from the international financial institutions. The budget restrictions are clearly a problem for all Malawian government agencies, not just the Human Rights Commission. However, given the important work of the Human Rights Commission and the legislative provision that mandates adequate funding for its work, the Malawian government should make full funding of the Human Rights Commission a priority.