Fair, recorded payments for everyone who trades in Dzaleka

More than 64,000 refugees and asylum seekers live in Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa District, and Malawians from nearby villages trade with them. DzalekaPay lets their shops, organisations and events take mobile money and card payments, with a record of every payment. [1]

Dzaleka in numbers

12,000: people the camp was built for when it opened in 1994 [3]
64,000+: refugees and asylum seekers at Dzaleka who rely on WFP food assistance (August 2026) [1]
38,000: people WFP plans to keep assisting from October 2026, down from 65,000 [1]
44%: cut in the kwacha's official value against the US dollar on 9 November 2023 [9]

Why money is hard here

### Aid is shrinking

WFP gives refugees in Dzaleka cash rather than food. Funding shortfalls cut that assistance to half of a full ration in 2023. [2]

From October 2026, WFP plans to assist only the most vulnerable: about 38,000 people instead of 65,000. For most households, the money they earn themselves now matters more than ever. [1]

### The law limits work and movement

Under the Refugees Act of 1989 and Malawi's reservations to the 1951 Refugee Convention, the government can decide where refugees live, and refugees are not exempt from work permits. Refugee traders interviewed for a 2025 study said they could not get work permits or register businesses in their own names. [6][7]

In 2023 the government ordered refugees living outside the camp to return by 15 April. Police detained 902 people between 17 and 26 May, and businesses were shut down. In March 2026, Malawi did not accept recommendations at the UN Human Rights Council to lift its reservations or end encampment. [4][5]

So most trade happens in and around the camp, much of it informally, between refugees and Malawian neighbours. [7]

### Banks rarely lend

New Finance Bank runs a branch inside the camp, which UNHCR described in 2019 as the first bank in a Southern African refugee camp. But banks and microfinance lenders still rely on formal identification and credit histories that refugees often do not have, so loans are rare. [8][7]

Traders start with what they have: part of a food ration sold, casual farm or cleaning work, goods on credit from suppliers, informal groups, and moneylenders. [7]

### A real economy, mostly in cash

Refugees run grocery shops, grain and vegetable trading, bars, lodges and tailoring, and the Tumaini Festival has brought artists and visitors to the camp since 2014. Much of this runs on cash, which can be lost or stolen and leaves no record a business can show a funder or lender. [11][7][10]

Money also loses value quickly: the kwacha was devalued by 44% in a single day in November 2023. [9]

What DzalekaPay does about it

### Take payments without cash

Share a payment link on WhatsApp, print a QR poster for your counter, or send a payment request to a customer's phone.
Customers pay with mobile money or card. They do not need a DzalekaPay account.
Supporters outside Malawi can pay by Visa or Mastercard when the card option is shown.

### Verification that fits the documents people have

Stores are verified with a selfie and one identity document: a refugee or asylum seeker ID (front and back), UNHCR proof of registration, a ration card, or a Malawi National ID.
Every store shows whether it is verified, on its payment page and on its QR poster.

### A record of every payment

Each payment has a receipt that anyone can check online.
Stores download monthly statements as PDF or CSV, to show a savings group, landlord, lender or funder what they earn.

### Community money in the open

Fundraising campaigns show their goal, the amount raised, the budget and updates from the organiser.
Events sell tickets online and check guests in at the gate.

What it costs

See pricing for current fees and settlement times.

What DzalekaPay is not

DzalekaPay is not a bank, mobile-money operator, personal wallet, remittance provider, or foreign-exchange service.
We do not lend money or give credit.
Using DzalekaPay does not change the rules on where refugees may live or work. Each business is responsible for the permits it needs.
Payments can show as pending until the customer's mobile network or bank confirms them. Stores should check that a payment is complete before handing over goods.

Sources

WFP Malawi Country Brief, August 2026. World Food Programme, 28 August 2026.
Funding crunch forces WFP to halve food rations for refugees amidst worsening hunger in Malawi. World Food Programme, 24 July 2023.
Malawi country page, Operational Data Portal. UNHCR, data to 31 July 2023.
Malawi: Refugees, Including Children, Forcibly Relocated. Human Rights Watch, 5 June 2023.
Malawi: Swiftly Implement Commitments, Address Human Rights Gaps. Human Rights Watch, 18 March 2026.
Malawi Refugee Law Reader (Refugees Act 1989 and reservations to the 1951 Convention). AfricanLII, 2025.
Refugee entrepreneurship within and beyond refugee camps: constrained and adaptive resourcefulness (Msowoya and Luiz), Entrepreneurship & Regional Development. Taylor & Francis (open access), 8 December 2025.
Malawi: Banking services in Dzaleka Refugee Camp. UNHCR, 10 June 2019.
Kwacha devalued by 44%. The Times Group, Malawi, 9 November 2023.
Breaking the mold for refugees: Founding the Tumaini Festival in Dzaleka Refugee Camp, Malawi. World Bank Blogs, 2018.
Malawi's refugee problem. African Arguments, June 2023.