Executive Summary - Centre for Language Studies

CHAPTER 1INTRODUCTION1.0. Preliminary remarksThe importance of language in the development of any country cannot begainsaid. Language is a key to any development process because it is the conduitof ideas and knowledge necessary for such endeavors. In this regard, languageneeds to be given special attention if it is to play a meaningful role in thedevelopment process. However, in Malawi, like in many other African countries,language has not been given due attention such that its contribution to nationaldevelopment is rarely appreciated.Apart from a comprehensive report on the language situation in the northern partof Malawi that was compiled by the Centre for Language Studies (CLS) followinga language mapping survey funded by the Open Society Initiative for SouthernAfrica (OSISA), Malawi did not have any reliable documentation on the languagesituation in the central and southern parts of the country. The only available dataon the language situation for the two regions was collected by the NationalStatistical Office (NSO) during population censuses. However, the data is flawedin many respects since generally the methods used in data collection were notappropriate to language research. Due to the absence of reliable linguisticinformation, the formulation of a comprehensive language policy for the countryas well as the implementation of the local language in education policy forprimary education has been adversely affected.Given the importance of language in facilitating national development agenda asstipulated in the Malawi Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (MPRSP), MalawiGrowth and Development Strategy (MGDS), Vision 2020 and the PolicyInvestment Framework (PIF) among others, the information gap on the language9