The Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB) was founded in April, 1987, as a result of a merger between the Malawi Certificate Examinations and Testing Board (MCE&TB) and the Examinations Section of the Ministry of Education and Culture. The MCE&TB had been created in 1969 by an Act of Parliament to take charge of the process of localising the development and administration of examinations in Malawi. Prior to these developments, students finishing their secondary education used to sit for the Cambridge overseas school leaving certificate examination.

Following this decision, the MCE&TB Act was amended in April 1987 to reflect the birth of a central Authority, MANEB. This new Act gave MANEB the responsibility to develop and administer national examinations for purposes of certification, selection and placement.

MANEB is a parastatal organisation whose financial support comes largely from the Malawi Government, supplemented by fees charged on examinations and other services.