Chakwera Addresses Hunger, Fuel, Violence in Malawi Night Speech
Chakwera condemned emerging incidents of political violence, joining former Heads of State Bakili Muluzi, Joyce Banda, and Arthur Peter Mutharika in their condemnation.
LILONGWE, Malawi – In a national address on Wednesday evening, President Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi confronted a trio of crises: a crippling hunger crisis brought on by drought, a disruption in the fuel supply, and escalating political violence, writes Winston Mwale.
To tackle the hunger crisis, fuel disruption, and political violence in Malawi, President Chakwera plans to secure more international aid, transition to a government-to-government system for fuel procurement, and support police investigations into all incidences of political violence.
Chakwera began by addressing the threat of hunger in Malawi.
"As you all know, eight months and three days ago, I addressed you to declare a State of Disaster in 23 of Malawi’s 28 districts because of the drought that had destroyed the food crops of over a million households across the country," he said.
Chakwera listed the 23 districts impacted, encompassing almost the entire country except for a few northern regions.
The president explained that over 749,000 hectares of maize, comprising 44% of the national crop, had been devastated.
This loss, according to the Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC), would leave 5.7 million Malawians food insecure from October 2024 to March 2025 and require nearly 350 billion Kwacha in off-budget resources to prevent starvation.
Recognising the urgency of the situation, Chakwera said he initiated the National El-Nino Response Plan and engaged international partners for support.
"Even though I knew that some people in our country would criticize and politicize my travel to the 9 countries I visited in those months, dismissing those trips as useless and wasteful, I also knew that being criticized was a price worth paying in order to find the necessary international support to prevent the far more terrible calamity of 5.7 million Malawians dying of hunger."
Chakwera acknowledged the support received from international partners: $92.6 million from the World Bank, $23 million from the African Development Bank, $18.2 million from the Africa Risk Capacity (ARC) Limited, $1.9 million from Japan through the World Food Program, 19,200 metric tonnes of maize from Ukraine through the World Food Program, $64,650 in commodity support from China, and 1,000 metric tonnes of rice from India.
He also thanked those in Malawi who donated to the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) or the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA).
Despite these efforts, a funding gap of K89 billion remains.
With the assistance received, food and cash distributions have been ongoing, with each affected household receiving either a 50kg bag of maize or K70,000 to purchase food.
This initiative, a collaboration between the government and the World Food Program, has reached 4.5 million people in 1.1 million households. However, 1.2 million people still need support.
Chakwera assured Malawians that help was on the way and highlighted his efforts to ensure better coordination among ministries for efficient aid distribution.
He has been visiting affected districts in the southern and central regions and plans to visit northern regions soon.
He has also held meetings with officials from the Ministries of Finance, Agriculture, and Local Government to address concerns about gaps in aid distribution.
In light of the food security situation and the need for fiscal discipline under the Extended Credit Facility with the International Monetary Fund, Chakwera said he instructed the Minister of Finance to announce austerity measures in the mid-year budget review.
Turning to the fuel crisis, Chakwera explained that Malawi's monthly fuel demand is around $50 million, handled by two main importers: the National Oil Company of Malawi (NOCMA) and Petroleum Importers Limited (PIL).
However, the country's foreign exchange generation has not kept pace with this demand, hindering importers' ability to secure sufficient forex.
For example, in August, NOCMA only raised $23 million of the required forex, and that number fell below $20 million in September and October, causing NOCMA's debt to suppliers to surge to $72 million in October and leading to a 10-day suspension in their fuel imports.
This suspension resulted in the fuel queues experienced over the past six weeks.
To address the crisis, Chakwera directed the Treasury to work with BADEA, which provided a $50 million revolving credit facility.
He also engaged the Reserve Bank to boost forex access through commercial banks. These interventions have enabled NOCMA and PIL to resume fuel supply.
Chakwera announced a transition from the Open Tender System to a Government-to-Government (G2G) arrangement for fuel procurement.
He explained, "And it is time for us to take a different approach. For this reason, my Administration has decided to begin the process of transitioning Malawi from the Open Tender System for procuring fuel to a Government-to-Government arrangement that will make our access to fuel more secure through better payment terms and cycles."
He highlighted the establishment of a Coordinating Committee three weeks ago to facilitate this transition.
This committee, chaired by the Minister of Energy, comprises key ministers, officials, and a Technical Committee of technocrats. He also shared his upcoming visit to Abu Dhabi to discuss this and other matters related to Malawi's fuel security.
Addressing the upcoming elections, Chakwera acknowledged reports of reluctance among some citizens, particularly those facing food insecurity, to register.
He also noted concerns about politicians discouraging voters. Chakwera asserted that voting is a constitutional right.
"My position, because I swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, is that voting in our elections is your constitutional right and you should register to vote because you should never surrender your constitutional rights for any reason," he stated.
He encouraged those with grievances about the registration process to seek resolution through the courts but not to forgo their right to register.
Finally, Chakwera condemned emerging incidents of political violence, joining former Heads of State Bakili Muluzi, Joyce Banda, and Arthur Peter Mutharika in their condemnation.
He referenced the murder of a political party member in Blantyre and the intimidation of demonstrators in Lilongwe as evidence of this worrying trend.
"These things will take our country nowhere," he declared, urging the Malawi Police Service to investigate and prosecute those responsible for political violence.
He emphasized the importance of maintaining Malawi's peaceful reputation and upholding its democratic values. Chakwera concluded by urging citizens to embrace peace and respect one another.