Update: Malawi formally handed over the chairmanship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation to Eswatini during the Organ Troika Summit in Durban, South Africa, on August 16. Second Vice President Enock Kamzingeni Chihana represented President Arthur Peter Mutharika at the meeting. According to the Malawi News Agency, Minister of Foreign Affairs George Chaponda commended Mutharika for his work in advancing peace initiatives in Madagascar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mozambique over the past year. Chihana delivered closing remarks, stating that the decisions taken at the summit will protect regional peace and democratic governance.
Update: The SADC Electoral Observation Mission to Zambia, led by Malawi's former Minister of Justice Samuel Tembenu, released its preliminary statement on August 15. According to SADC official records, Tembenu and other international mission heads called on Zambian political parties to de-escalate tensions and allow the Electoral Commission of Zambia to complete the vote counting process for the recent general elections. Justice Annabel Mtalimanja, Chairperson of the Malawi Electoral Commission, also participated in the proceedings as the head of the Electoral Commissions Forum Observation Mission.