The theme for this year's conference, "Human Resource Transformation and Innovation: The Key to Increasing Productivity at Work," is more befitting and comes at an opportune time when President Arthur Peter Mutharika's government is implementing Public Service Reforms.

Attempts to reform have been made before in Malawi but the widely blamed challenge of lack of political will that has undermined previous reforms is no longer a constraint as there is now an abundance of political will emanating from the professional and coordinated work between President Mutharika, VP Chilima, PSR Commission, department heads and the general public.