Decentralization, empowerment and grassroots engagement: advocacy organizations navigating the implementation of codified disability rights in Malawi

In 2012, Malawi passed its Disability Act, lauded as progressive disability rights legislation by advocates. Since 2012, the Federation of Disability Organizations in Malawi (FEDOMA) has worked toward the actualization and implementation of those codified rights through grassroots advocacy at the district and local levels, through District Disability Forums (DDFs). In this chapter, using a geographical lens and drawing on findings from in-depth interviews and participant observation, I consider the ways in which advocates develop resources; prioritize rights; access and engage in different spaces, including many from which they are generally excluded; and perform voice within these spaces - communicating with a range of audiences through word, action and presence. This chapter contributes to considerations of implementation and activation of codified disability rights as ongoing processes which disability advocates must navigate based on the particulars of their place(s), space(s) and time.