The Gender and Justice Unit

23/12/2025

On air at Police FM Radio 📻 raising awareness of free legal empowerment services with support from through our Dedza project.

23/12/2025

🎙️ With support from , legal empowerment is reaching more communities

Today on the Malawi Police Services Radio Police FM , Chifundo Chulu Project Coordinator for the EmpowerSAFE Project in Dedza, spoke about the work of the Gender and Justice Unit and how communities can access free legal support.

She highlighted the toll-free 4285 Legal Empowerment Line and the Empowerline Malawi App (free on Google Play & App Store), alongside the wider legal and survivor-support services GJU provides.

She was joined by Sub Inspector Aaron Nkoma (Lilongwe Police) , a long-standing partner, and Counsel Peter Mota, a lawyer and core GBV responder, whose work supporting survivors through legal clinics and court preparation continues to make a difference in Dedza.

23/12/2025

📸 Empowering safer, fairer justice systems

With support from through our EmpowerSafe Project, the Gender and Justice Unit and our partner the Women JudgesAssociationofMalawi brought together magistrates, justices, and justice sector actors for the first WOJAM–GJU Case Review Meeting.

Over two days, participants reviewed real mobile court cases from the Maonde Court in Dedza and shared practical lessons to strengthen:
• gender-responsive decision-making
• survivor-centred handling of GBV and family law cases
• child-focused custody and maintenance orders
• consistency and quality in judgments

The discussions produced clear, actionable recommendations that will guide judicial training, program improvements, and the 2026 action plan, with a strong focus on justice outcomes for women and children in rural communities.

We thank Trócaire for their continued partnership through EmpowerSafe, and all judicial officers and practitioners who contributed their time and expertise to this process.

18/12/2025

Day 1 of the GJU - WOJAM Justice Consortium Dedza Case Review & Mobile Court Training Meeting (18 December 2025) held at Capital Hotel, Lilongwe.

Today’s case review session focused on decisions from the Maonde Mobile Courts in Dedza, implemented under the Trócaire-funded EmpowerSafe Project. Magistrates, Judges and other justice actors came together to reflect on the Maonde judgments, strengthen consistency, and raise the quality of justice delivered to women and children in remote communities. This session sets the tone for 2026, prioritising learning, accountability, and people-centred justice that works for those who need it most!

Tomorrow we will be focusing on trauma-informed and survivor-centered justice delivery at all levels of the court process. Integration of legal clinics, psycho-social services and other protective measures must be standard court practice - not practice.

17/12/2025

🎥 NOW AVAILABLE | GJU PABWALO DIALOGUE 🎥

Digital violence is real violence, and silence enables it.

The GJU Pabwalo Dialogue on Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence, held during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence 2025, is now available to watch on YouTube. This Pabwalo brought together survivors, community voices, and key duty bearers to openly confront online abuse, sextortion, cyber-harassment, and digital intimidation - and to place institutions directly before the public to respond and make commitments.

📌 In this video, you will see:
✔ Survivor-centred community testimonies
✔ Honest engagement with police, regulators, and justice institutions
✔ Public commitments to improve prevention, response, and accountability
✔ A culturally grounded, feminist approach to dialogue and justice

The dialogue was hosted by the Gender and Justice Unit (GJU) in collaboration with the Southern Africa Trust, as part of ongoing efforts to ensure digital spaces are safe, accountable, and just for women and girls. Additional support for the was provided by Trocaire and Irish Rule of Law International.

📺 Watch the full Pabwalo Dialogue here:
👉 https://youtu.be/rBs6HP57ws0

Ending technology-facilitated gender-based violence requires more than awareness; it requires action, coordination, and accountability.

📣 Watch. Share. Demand follow-through.

As part of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence 2025, the Gender and Justice Unit (GJU) and the Southern Africa Trust convened the ...

17/12/2025

The GJU team yesterday (Tuesday 16, December) engaged with the Dedza Gender Technical Working Group to share progress from our Trócaire-supported EmpowerSafe access to justice programme. This engagement represents an important milestone in strengthening GJU’s operational presence in Dedza as part of our forward planning for 2026.

Following our presentation on programme expansion, the Working Group recommended that GJU present a detailed progress update to the District Executive Committee this Thursday. In addition, we were advised to initiate engagement with the Area Development Committee serving communities around Kafere Ward, in collaboration with the relevant Traditional Authority, to begin the process of identifying Group Village Headpersons for potential collaboration in 2026, subject to District Executive Committee approval.

By deliberately working through established district and community governance structures, GJU is advancing localisation and institutional capacity strengthening, while reinforcing existing gender-based violence referral pathways rather than creating parallel systems. This approach ensures stronger coordination, community ownership, and the long-term sustainability of access to justice interventions.

13/12/2025

Bringing justice closer to women in Dedza.

Over the past week, the Gender and Justice Unit (GJU) implemented a coordinated set of legal empowerment clinics and a mobile court session under our EmpowerSafe project, reaching women across Traditional Authorities Kamenya, Fosa, and Thambolagwa.

Working alongside paralegals deployed by the Malawi Legal Aid Bureau, the Dedza Court clerk, and the Magistrate, GJU delivered community-based legal services that moved seamlessly from awareness to action. The clinics began with legal education on gender-related laws and GBV response, followed by one-on-one legal consultations for women with specific cases.

Our Dedza Community Liaisons supported mobilisation, enabling us to engage 136 women out of a targeted 150. During the clinics, the court clerk registered cases immediately, ensuring timely referral to the mobile courts.

On Friday, 12 December, the mobile court session, conducted under our WOJAM partnership,heard cases arising from both recent and prior clinics. Two rulings were delivered, with additional matters scheduled to continue next week. Participants were also oriented on the EmpowerLine toll-free service (4285) to strengthen ongoing access to legal information and support.

This integrated model: legal awareness, direct legal support, and courts within communities, demonstrates GJU’s holistic approach to access to justice for women experiencing gender-based violence.

We are grateful to Trócaire for funding this work, to WOJAM for partnership on the mobile courts, and to the Malawi Legal Aid Bureau for strengthening service delivery through the deployment of paralegals.

📸

13/12/2025

Gratitude, always. 🙏🏾

During the recent 16 Days of Activism Against GBV, two young Malawian influencers - Alpha Lennie and Peter M - used their platforms with courage and purpose. Through a powerful series of videos, they unpacked digital GBV, named the harm, and most importantly, shared where survivors can turn for support.

By amplifying GJU, the EmpowerLine toll-free number (4285), and the EmpowerLine Malawi app, they helped ensure that critical information reached young people where they already are: online.

Today we’re sharing their final two videos from this series. Thank you, Alpha Lennie and Peter M, for choosing impact, for standing with survivors, and for reminding us that digital spaces must also be safe spaces.

📞 4285 | 📱 EmpowerLine Malawi App

11/12/2025

Honoured to see today’s Daily Times (11 December 2025) highlight the renewed partnership between the Women Judges Association of Malawi (WOJAM) and the Gender and Justice Unit (GJU). Our updated MoU strengthens our shared commitment to improving access to justice for survivors of gender-based violence through judicial leadership, community-driven approaches, and digital innovations such as Empowerline 4285 and the EmpowerLine Malawi App. For GJU, this collaboration represents deepening alignment with national justice actors — the kind of integration that ensures survivor-centred, accessible, and transformative justice systems.

We are proud of this milestone and the work ahead. 💛✨

11/12/2025

At today’s National Gender Technical Working Group meeting, Emma Kalea Chigwenembe ( ), our Deputy Director, highlighted one of our key best practices: the Empowerline digital platforms: the toll-free 4285 line and the EmpowerLine Malawi App, both vital tools for advancing survivor-centered access to support.

This moment marks a meaningful milestone for GJU. Being given the space to present reflects the Ministry of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare’s recognition and appreciation of our work, a sign of the growing integration that is essential to GJU’s mission.

10/12/2025

As we close the 16 Days of Activism, we refuse to close our eyes for the rest of the year.

narrating "Pabwalo – A Return to Safety and Accountability" reminds us that digital gender-based violence does not end with campaigns: it follows, it waits, it escalates. Accountability must be cultural, constant, and lived 365 days a year.

From the circle to the screen, we choose protection over silence, action over apologies, and dignity over damage.

Ndife anthu. And our safety is not seasonal.