Dedza - Local Democracy

Map of Dedza Population Geography Economy Local Democracy


Dedza District has 8 Parliamentary Constituencies with one MP each. There are 32 Wards that elect a Member to the District Council.

Consultation with the community is an important aspect of local government. Development projects often require a contribution of labour or materials from the community. These activities are conducted through a hierarchy of District, Traditional Authority, Village Group and Village.

Dedza has eight Traditional Authorities (TAs). There is one Senior Chief (in the Kachindamoto TA), six chiefs and one Sub Traditional Authority. Each TA area has an Area Development Committee (ADC). Dedza Township is a separate area.

An Area Development Committee is composed of -

  • The Chief
  • Village Group Headmen
  • Two ordinary representatives (one of whom must be a woman) from the Village Development Committee for each Village Group
  • Member of Parliament for the Area
  • One representative from each of the business community, religious groups, political parties, NGOs working in the Area and Members of the Assembly

The functions of the ADC include prioritising development requests from Village Development Committees to be passed on to the District Assembly, requesting funding from the Assembly, mobilising local contributions for community projects, monitoring initiatives and informing communities about government initiatives.

Map No Traditional Authority Population 2008 Villages Village Groups
1 Tambala 62,637 518 42
2 Chauma 20,896 310 24
3 Kasumbu 71,199 555 41
4 Kaphuka 133,778 109 16
5 Kachindamoto 93,532 129 8
6 Kamenyagwaza 30,358 143 12
7 Chilikumwendo 60,707 69 6
8 Kanchere 131,097 169 18
  Dedza Township 20,241    
    624,445 2002 167

There are 2002 villages in Dedza District. The average population of village is 312. The villages are clustered into Village Groups, with an average of 12 villages per Group. Each Group has a Village Development Committee (VDC).

Map showing Dedza District Village Groups

Dedza District Village Groups

 Sifwe - District Comissioner

A previous District Comissioner for Dedza District

A Village Development Committee consists of -

  • The Village Group Headman
  • Village Headpersons for each village
  • Male and female representatives for each village
  • Extension workers from District Assembly Departments
  • Representatives of religious groups, political parties and Members of the Assembly

The Traditional Authority system may deal with some civil law matters, such as land disputes.