The Vice President was speaking at Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe during a conference to review the performance of Tilitonse which is a program aimed at promoting among other things good governance.

“As a country, let us agree that change hurts, but it is the only way out to meaningful development. Change means that there are winners and losers. What are the net gains for the country if we implement change? Change means asking tough questions and getting not so pleasant answers," said Chilima.

Chilima said during the time Tilitonse has been in the country it has made a significant contribution to improving justice and accountability.

The Vice President further appealed to participants at the conference to reflect on governance issues and do self-assessment of what role they have played as civil society in as far as advocacy is concerned.

"As a civil society, are you supposed to join the protests or again help in communicating to the masses that this is important if we are to improve equality in education, especially when we look at the resource envelope in the wake of population boom?” he questioned.

Besides, Jen Marshall who is Head of Britain’s Department for International Development – DfID in Malawi said she was happy with the way the funds have been used in the program.

The creation of Tilitose Fund was motivated by the deteriorating governance context of Malawi between 2009 and 2011.