Malawi
Architects and Quantity Surveyors Act
Chapter 53:02
- Commenced on 1 April 1992
- [This is the version of this document at 31 December 2014.]
- [Note: This version of the Act was revised and consolidated in the Fifth Revised Edition of the Laws of Malawi (L.R.O. 1/2018), by the Solicitor General and Secretary for Justice under the authority of the Revision of the Laws Act.]
Part I – Preliminary
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Architects and Quantity Surveyors Act.2. Interpretation
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—“approved institution” means any university, institute, college or school of architecture or quantity surveying approved by the Board pursuant to section 14 (b);“Board” means the Board of Architects and Quantity Surveyors established by section 3;“Chairman” means the Chairman of the Board designated by the Minister pursuant to section 4 (3);“financial year” means the financial year of the Board as provided by section 20;“register” means the register of Architects, or the register of Graduate Architects, or the register of Architectural Technicians, or the register of Quantity Surveyors, or the register of Graduate Quantity Surveyors, or the register of Quantity Surveying Technicians, as the case may be, maintained by the Board pursuant to section 22;“Registrar” means the Secretary;“Secretary” means the Secretary to the Board designated by the Minister pursuant to section 8; and“Vice-Chairman” means the Vice-Chairman of the Board designated by the Minister pursuant to section 4 (3).Part II – Administration
Division A—Board of Architects and Quantity Surveyors
3. Establishment of the Board
4. Composition of the Board
5. Disqualifications
Any person who—6. Tenure of office of members of the Board and vacancies thereon
7. Remuneration of members of the Board
Any member of the Board who is not an officer in the public service shall be paid out of the funds of the Board such remuneration and allowances, if any, as may be prescribed.8. Secretary/ Registrar
9. Other staff of the Board
10. Meetings of the Board
11. Committees of the Board
12. Co-opted persons
The Board or any committee of the Board may, in its discretion, at any time and for any length of time invite any person, and the Minister may in like manner nominate any officer in the public service, to attend any meeting of the Board or of a committee of the Board and to take part in the deliberations thereat, but such person or officer shall not be entitled to vote at that meeting.13. Minutes of Board and committee meetings
Minutes of every meeting of the Board and of a committee of the Board shall be taken and kept by the Secretary or by such other officer of the Board as the Secretary may designate in that behalf and shall be subject to confirmation by the Board or the committee at the succeeding meeting.Division B—Powers of the Board
14. Powers of the Board
The Board shall be the sole qualifying and registering authority for the professions of architecture and quantity surveying in Malawi and shall have the following powers—15. Power of the Board to make rules
The Board may, with the approval of the Minister, make rules for all or any of the following purposes—16. Non-liability of members of the Board
No member of the Board shall be liable for any act or default of his, or of the Board, done in good faith in the exercise or purported exercise of his duties as member of the Board.Part III – Financial and accounting provisions
17. Funds of the Board
18. Investment of surplus sums
The Board may invest any sums which are not immediately required for its objects in such manner as the Minister may approve.19. Borrowing powers
Subject to the provisions of section 32 (1) of the Finance and Audit Act, the Board may borrow, either temporarily, by way of overdraft or otherwise, such sums as it may require for meeting its obligations or discharging its functions under this Act.[Cap. 37:01]20. Financial year of the Board
The financial year of the Board shall be the period commencing on the date of commencement of this Act and ending on the following 31st March and thereafter it shall be a period of twelve months ending on 31st March every year.21. Books, accounts, audits and reports
Part IV – Registration
22. Registers
23. Architects and Quantity Surveyors must be registered
24. Applications to the Board
Every application for registration under this Act shall be made to the Board in the form and manner prescribed and shall be accompanied with the appropriate prescribed fee.25. Qualification for registration as an Architect
Any person may, upon making application for registration, be registered as an Architect provided that he proves to the satisfaction of the Board that his professional and general conduct has been such as not, in the opinion of the Board, to debar him from registration and that he—26. Qualifications for registration as a Graduate Architect
27. Qualifications for registration as an Architectural Technician
28. Qualifications for registration as a Quantity Surveyor
Any person may, upon making application for registration, be registered as a Quality Surveyor provided that he proves to the satisfaction of the Board that his professional and general conduct has been such as not, in the opinion of the Board, to debar him from registration and that he—29. Qualifications for registration as a Graduate Quantity Surveyor
30. Qualification for registration as a Quantity Surveying Technician
31. Certificate of registration
The Registrar shall issue to every person registered as an Architect, Graduate Architect, Architectural Technician, Quantity Surveyor, Graduate Quantity Surveyor, Quantity Surveying Technician, as the case may be, under this Act, a cerficate of registration in the appropriate prescribed form.32. Correction of Registers
Part V – Disciplinary provisions
33. Suspension or striking out of Architects or Quantity Surveyors
The Board shall, in its own right or on the recommendation of the Malawi Institute of Architects or the Surveyors Institute of Malawi, as the case may be, have the right to reprimand or suspend any Architect or Quantity Surveyor or strike out of the register the name of any such person who shall have been found by the Board to have been guilty of unprofessional conduct as defined by Rules made under section 15.34. Suspension or striking out of Graduate Architects, Architectural Technicians, Graduate Quantity Surveyors or Quantity Surveying Technicians
The Board shall, in its own right or on the recommendation of the Malawi Institute of Architects or the Surveyors Institute of Malawi, as the case may be, have the right to reprimand or suspend any person registered under this Act as a Graduate Architect, an Architectural Technician, a Graduate Quantity Surveyor or a Quantity Surveying Technician or strike out of the register the name of any such person who shall have been found by the Board to have been guilty of misconduct as defined by Rules made under section 15.Part VI – Offences
35. Unlawful practice of architecture or quantity surveying
Save where this Act otherwise provides, any person who is not registered under this Act, and who in Malawi—36. Unlawful use of descriptions
Any person who, in relation to himself or to any business which he owns, manages or controls, assumes or uses, in Malawi—37. Unlawful employment of non-registered person
38. Fraudulent entries and copies
Any person who knowingly or fraudulently makes, or causes, or permits to be made—Part VII – Miscellaneous
39. Use of title
40. Execution of certificates and other documents
No certificate or other document which is required by law, or under the terms or conditions of any contract, to be signed by a duly qualified architect or quantity surveyor, shall, if so signed in Malawi, be valid unless signed by a person duly registered, and competent to sign such certificate or other document, under this Act.41. Regulations
The Minister may, from time to time, by Regulations, made by notice in the Gazette, prescribe anything which by the provisions of this Act may be prescribed and in respect of which no other prescribing authority is specified, and may, in like manner, from time to time, make Regulations for the better carrying out of this Act, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, such Regulations may make provision for—42. Appeals
Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Board may appeal to the Minister, whose decision in the matter shall be final and shall not be subject to appeal to, or review or question by any court of law and the Minister shall not be required to assign any reasons therefor.43. Repeal of Cap. 53:02 and savings
History of this document
31 December 2014 this version
Consolidation
01 April 1992
Commenced