Malawi’s forests and wildlife are under growing pressure from illegal exploitation, driven by rising demand for natural resources and enabled by corruption and illicit financial flows. From illegal logging to wildlife trafficking, environmental crimes not only threaten biodiversity and local livelihoods, but also weaken public institutions and deprive the country of vital resources for sustainable development.

Charcoal illustrates the complex challenges involved: According to Malawi’s National Charcoal Strategy 2017–2027, 97% of households rely on illegally and unsustainably sourced charcoal and firewood for cooking and heating. In response to the resulting deforestation and forest degradation, the government has tightened enforcement against illegal wood harvesting and charcoal production while promoting alternative cooking fuels.

Building on several years of collaboration with government partners in Malawi, the Basel Institute on Governance is launching a new project to strengthen the country’s response to environment-related financial crime and corruption.

The three-year initiative, Mainstreaming Malawi’s progress in tackling environment-related financial crime and corruption, is funded by the UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and implemented through the Basel Institute’s Green Corruption programme.

Activities have commenced on the ground and will run through to June 2028.

A joined-up approach: enforcement and prevention

The project supports Malawi’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife, Department of Forestry and Anti-Corruption Bureau in strengthening both enforcement capacities and corruption prevention systems linked to wildlife and forestry crimes.

Rather than focusing solely on individual criminal cases, the initiative takes a broader institutional approach. It combines financial investigation techniques and case-based mentoring with efforts focusing on prevention to strengthen internal controls, improve inter-agency coordination and reduce corruption vulnerabilities within environmental agencies themselves.

Among the planned activities are:

• mentoring investigators and prosecutors working on corruption and money laundering cases linked to wildlife and forestry crime;
• supporting the development of digital case registration and tracking systems to strengthen case management from investigation to prosecution;
• helping Institutional Integrity Committees and internal auditors identify and mitigate corruption risks; and
• developing training, practical guidance and knowledge products to support long-term institutional capacity.

Dr Amanda Cabrejo le Roux, Deputy Direct of Green Corruption and the project lead, said:

“This project represents a significant step forward in our efforts to support environmental agencies in protecting Malawi’s wildlife and natural resources, while also reinforcing institutional integrity. By combining financial investigation techniques with robust prevention systems, we help our government partners create a sustainable framework for countering financial crime linked to the environment.”

Building on proven partnerships

The project expands on earlier DEFRA-funded work implemented jointly by the Basel Institute and the Lilongwe Wildlife Trust, which helped strengthen anti-corruption responses to wildlife crime through a combination of enforcement support and corruption prevention measures.

Through this and over a decade of engagement in Malawi, we enjoy strong working relationships with Malawi’s Anti-Corruption Bureau, Department of National Parks and Wildlife, Department of Forestry and Malawi Police Service – partnerships that now provide the foundation for broader and more ambitious work on environment-related financial crime.

The initiative also connects to the Basel Institute’s wider Green Corruption programme, which supports governments and partners around the world in addressing corruption linked to environmental crime, climate change and the global energy transition.

As global demand for timber, minerals and other natural resources increases, corruption risks linked to environmental exploitation are becoming more complex and transnational. Through our work in Malawi and beyond, the Basel Institute aims to strengthen the governance systems needed to protect natural resources, safeguard communities and ensure environmental policies can be effectively enforced.

Learn more

• Find out about the Green Corruption programme.
• Interested in corruption and governance in the environmental space? Join the Countering Environmental Corruption Practitioners Forum, a global community of practitioners jointly led by the Basel Institute on Governance, Transparency International, WWF and TRAFFIC.