CCEDI Turn Heat on Trade Minister Mumba to Bust Illovo Sugar Cartel
The Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI) has fired a scathing letter at Minister of Trade and Industry Vitumbiko Mumba, demanding immediate action to bust what it describes as a deep-rooted sugar cartel led by Illovo Sugar Malawi — a company it accuses of holding the entire nation hostage through price manipulation and monopolistic practices.
In the hard-hitting letter dated March 6, 2025, CDEDI Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa lays bare the frustrations of millions of Malawians who are being forced to pay between K4,000 and K5,000 per kilogram of sugar on the parallel market while the country’s largest sugar producer continues to rake in massive profits year after year. Namiwa brands Illovo as a “de facto Ministry of Sugar” — a private multinational that has operated above the law for decades with the silent blessing of both government and regulators.
The letter describes how Illovo has systematically manipulated supply, creating artificial shortages that have turned sugar — once a basic household commodity — into a luxury item accessible only to the rich. According to CDEDI, the scarcity is not a coincidence but a deliberate scheme to drive up prices while ordinary Malawians are left to scramble for whatever little sugar trickles into the market. The watchdog also accuses Illovo of using legal gymnastics to evade accountability, revealing that the company obtained an injunction to block the Competition and Fair Trading Commission (CFTC) from enforcing a 25% price reduction and to stop the Director of Public Prosecutions from pursuing criminal charges against the company.
Namiwa paints a picture of a country where both government and consumers have been held to ransom by a corporate giant for over 60 years — with neither cane farmers nor the government itself reaping any meaningful benefits from the sugar industry. The letter further exposes how the long-awaited Sugar Bill — legislation meant to regulate the sugar industry — has been gathering dust for 11 years without any explanation from authorities.
CDEDI is now demanding that Minister Mumba calls for an emergency Sugar Indaba to unmask the entire cartel, including secret agreements between Illovo and major distributors such as Price Worth, Right Price, Chipiku, Kalaria, and Simama General Dealers. The group wants full disclosure of the total tonnage of sugar produced in the last production year, how much of that sugar was exported, and why no individual consumer can buy sugar directly from Illovo despite the company monopolizing the market.
In a no-holds-barred statement, Namiwa warns that Malawi’s sugar crisis cannot be tolerated by any “sensible and serious leadership” — especially at a time when Malawians are already grappling with the high cost of living. He accuses the government of dragging its feet on crucial reforms, hinting at possible collusion between public officials and powerful corporate interests.
CDEDI’s letter is a direct challenge to Minister Mumba, whose recent crackdown on illegal sugar hoarding has been widely viewed as nothing more than a cosmetic PR stunt.
The group is demanding that the minister goes beyond storming shops and addresses the rot at the very heart of the supply chain — starting with Illovo’s secretive distribution network and its stranglehold on the market.
As the sugar crisis worsens, CDEDI is warning of mass action if the government does not rise to the occasion.
