Face lift of Kamuzu International Airport to boost Malawi’s economy: APM hails Japan
President Peter Mutharika has expressed hopes of an upward spiral in the country’s economy and tourism industry when the face lift of Kamuzu International Airport (KIA) gets completed.
The first citizen expressed the optimism at KIA on Friday, after the ground breaking ceremony which officially marked commencement of the expansion project of the international airport.
In his statement, the Head of State said expansion of the airport would mean more visitors to the country and enhanced inter-country relations with positive reflections on the economy and the tourism industry.
“This is just the beginning; next (to be transformed) is Chileka followed by Mzuzu and Mangochi airports. We want to effect fair distribution of development in all the regions,” explained Mutharika who further added; “The bigger and the more modern our airports, the more the travelers who bring in revenue.”
He also stated that expansion of the KIA was the beginning of the fulfillment of his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) promise which will expand to the other regions including Likoma Island.
He said airports in Likoma and Mangochi would also make Lake Malawi a tourist attraction center.
The 24 months US$ 33 million (about K 25.7 billion) Japanese funded project will include construction of aircraft surveillance equipment, baggage handling system and security equipment.
Speaking earlier at the event, Japanese Ambassador to Malawi, Kae Yanagisawa explained that good aviation was critical for a country’s development in the modern world and Malawi, being landlocked, will stand to benefit a lot from the project.
She also said Japan’s funding of the project was manifestation of the good bilateral relations between the two countries.
Make sure, us Malawians’ involvement in this project precludes the handling of money. Period. That is if Japan wants to see the project completed, not only on time, but ever.
We are NOT to be trusted with money at all: the evidence is all the place, like Chileka, where improvements were started four or five years ago, and are not yet completed. What the f…? Corruption, that’s what the f…!
Flying in from OR Tambo to Chileka, makes me feel like I am flying into a bush airport or actually airfield, in a bush league country.
Hopefully, whilst thats being done; Chileka will receive similar techno facelift otherwise all the upward economic spiral will take place elsewhere – there is a need for a better alternate airport within Malawi that can accept & accommodate modern large aircrafts. The offer of at least two international airports within Malawi means lower fuel uplift for many airlines operating into the country, (without need for Harare, Lusaka, Beira or Dar-es-salaam as destination alternates).