Malawi army suffers critical equipment deficit, says report of Parliamentary Committee

Military equipment  deficiencies in the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) has been exposed by of a report by the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security.

In the report, committee chairperson Alex Chitete said field visits and consultations his committee undertook between September 2017 and April 2018 established that the MDF lacked some critical equipment.

He said the committee also observed that there were many other challenges at the air wing in Lilongwe, including dilapidated infrastructure, inadequate funding, lack of VIP lounge and transit room.

In its report, the committee recommended introduction of an air wing vote independent of MDF. It also recommended upgrading of infrastructure.

However, Speaker of Parliament Richard Msowoya ordered suspension of presentation of a the report due to the sensitivity of emerging details as it touched on national security.

The Speaker ordered Chitete to simply deposit his statement with the House for the record.