Lilongwe – Former Deputy Prime Minister Themba Nhlanganiso Masuku has assumed leadership of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Electoral Observation Mission (SEOM) in Malawi ahead of the country’s general election set for 16 September 2025.
Masuku arrived in Lilongwe this week and immediately met the SADC Organ Troika, the SADC Electoral Advisory Council (SEAC), and the SADC Secretariat during a working dinner. The gathering provided him with updates on Malawi’s electoral environment and preparations for the polls.
The following morning, he paid a courtesy call on Malawi’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nancy Tembo. She thanked His Majesty King Mswati III for Eswatini’s support at what she described as a critical time for Malawi. She noted that, as current Chair of SADC, Malawi is barred by law from observing its own elections, making Eswatini’s leadership of the mission vital. 
Masuku later met with ambassadors and high commissioners accredited to Malawi, including Eswatini’s Commissioner Mlondi Dlamini, who is based in Maputo. He also presided over the certification of SADC observers who had completed training ahead of their deployment across the country. Among them is Hon. Dr. Bonginkosi Dlamini from Mhlambanyatsi Inkhundla, who has been deployed to Rumphi District in northern Malawi.
On 10 September, Masuku will officially launch the mission, which will see 80 observers from ten SADC member states deployed across all 28 districts of Malawi. Their mandate is to monitor the electoral process and ensure it meets regional and international standards of transparency, credibility, and peace.
His Majesty King Mswati III, in his capacity as Incoming Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence, and Security Cooperation, appointed Masuku to lead the mission. The King also tasked the SADC Secretariat, led by Executive Secretary Elias Mpedi Magosi, with coordinating the observers’ deployment on the ground.
