The Directorate of Electoral Services is one of the core operational arms of the Malawi Electoral Commission. The Directorate is tasked with the overall management of electoral programmes, logistics, and warehousing—ensuring that all election processes are conducted with professionalism, efficiency, and integrity.

The Directorate is headed by the Director of Electoral Services, supported by an Electoral Services Manager, Warehouse Manager, and technical officers responsible for programmes, training, and demarcations. At the headquarters, the Directorate comprises eight technical and one administrative staff, complemented by warehouse teams and regional and district-level officers across the country.

The operational structure extends to:

• Three Regional Offices (North, Centre, and South)
• 99 District-level Officers (District Elections Officers, Assistant District Elections Officers, and District Elections Clerks)
• 18 Warehouse Staff across central, regional, and head office warehouses.

This network ensures effective coordination, distribution, and management of electoral activities nationwide.

Core Functions

The Directorate’s work revolves around planning, managing, and executing all electoral processes. Its key responsibilities include:

• Election Planning and Management – Developing operational plans, budgets, and electoral calendars that guide all electoral activities from voter registration to results management.
• Voter Registration and Poll Management – Overseeing registration, voter transfers, inspection of registers, and polling operations in coordination with regional and district teams.
• Recruitment and Training – Coordinating the recruitment and training of both permanent and temporary election staff in liaison with the Directorate of Human Resources and Administration.
• Review and Delimitation – Conducting the demarcation and review of ward and constituency boundaries at least every ten years, ensuring equitable representation.
• Warehousing and Logistics Management – Managing the storage, distribution, and custody of election materials and equipment, including ballot boxes, polling booths, registration kits, EMDs, gas lamps, and generators.
• The Directorate also serves as the Secretariat to the Electoral Services Committee (ESC), which provides oversight and guidance on election operations.

Warehousing and Logistics

Given the magnitude of electoral operations, the Commission relies heavily on efficient logistics and warehousing systems. MEC maintains warehouses in Lilongwe (Head Office and Regional Centre), Blantyre, and Mzuzu, which support decentralized packing and distribution of election materials.

Each warehouse is staffed with supervisors and clerks who ensure materials are properly received, stored, and distributed to registration centres. While the current system remains largely manual, the Commission is working toward modernization through digital inventory management and improved infrastructure. Plans are underway to relocate warehousing functions from Blantyre to the new headquarters at Njewa, Lilongwe, alongside the establishment of a new ICT Data Centre.