Malawi has cancelled Independence Day celebrations due to the Covid-19 pandemic, its new President Lazarus Chakwera said.

The celebrations had been planned for July 6 at the Bingu National Stadium to coincide with Chakwera’s inauguration ceremony which has since been moved to Kamuzu Barracks, online publication Malawi24 reported.

It said the inauguration ceremony would be attended by a small audience of 100 people.

In a national address on Sunday, Chakwera said he had arrived at his decision to avoid the further spread of Covid-19.

"I urge those planning to travel to the celebrations to cancel their travel plans accordingly," he said.

"We are all at risk of this coronavirus. It also includes me and state vice president that means we have to take this seriously."

The southern African country has so far recorded 1 613 Covid-19 cases, out of which 17 people have died while 317 have recovered.

Malawi24 quoted Chakwera as telling journalists in the capital Lilongwe that it was difficult to implement a 100 percent lockdown nationwide even though coronavirus cases were rising.

"You cannot have a 100 percent lockdown in all our villages and towns. You know that we are people given to subsistence living," he said.

"This demands that we find food on a daily basis. So we can’t have a lockdown as implemented in some nations in the West or the East. We will make sure that whatever measures we follow, Malawians should not suffer because Malawians need help."

Malawi's high court in Lilongwe blocked former president Peter Mutharika's plans to implement a 21-day lockdown from April 18 to May 9.

The Human Rights Defenders Coalition had approached the court against the move, saying it was worried that the government was taking a haphazard approach. It wanted the government to first address concerns that Malawians had regarding their livelihoods. 

The court granted the rights group a seven day injunction against the lockdown, and on April 24 reserved judgement after hearing arguments from the applicants.

Mutharika's administration withdrew its challenge at the 11th hour and the case remained in limbo until a new government was elected on June 23.