Malawi economy is bad, Afrobarometer survey reveals: Minister Dausi says results surprising
The research institution Afrobarometer report findings, reveals that the country’s economy is in bad shape but government says it is surprised with the survey results.
According to the results finding delivered at Victoria Hotel in Blantyre, 86% of respondents said the feel economic turmoil despite the falling consumer and national inflation.
The country’s annual rate of inflation has been falling steadily for more than 10 months since June 2016 largely helped by declining food prices, a relatively stable kwacha and lower international fuel prices.
Official data from the National Statistical Office (NSO) showed on Wednesday that Malawi’s headline inflation slowed to 12.3 percent year-on-year in May from 14.6 percent in April.
According to the survey the economy is expected to nose dive in the next 12 months.
In the survey, 77% of the respondents described their personal living conditions as very bad.
In the survey it was revealed that Malawians are not inspired with the way the government is handling key economic issues.
For example the report has justified that safety nets programs which are aimed at uplifting people from poverty such as Farm Input Subsidy Program has failed to help poor Malawians and that it should be scrapped.
Afrobarometer is a pan African , non partisan research network that conducts public attitude surveys on democracy , governance, economic conditions and related issues in African countries.
During the survey, the Afrobarometer team, led by the Centre for Social Research at Chancellor College, a constituent college of the University of Malawi (Unima), interviewed 1 200 adult Malawians in December last year and January this year.
Issues on the economic front where government scored poorly include keeping prices stable (90 percent), narrowing income gaps (86 percent), managing the economy (84 percent), creating jobs (81 percent), ensuring there is enough to eat (80 percent) and improving living standards of the poor (77 percent).
Commenting on the report, Malawi Economic Justice Network, (Mejn) Executive Director Dalitso Kubalasa said he agrees with the findings on economy, saying it is a true reflection of what is on the ground.
Kubalasa said its time government look into the issue seriously in order to help Malawians come out of the poverty.
“It time to call a spade a spade than being defensive this is our country. I regard these findings as a mirror,” aaid Kubalasa.
“Malawians are sincerely with what they are saying [that economy is bad],” he said.
But government spokesman and Minister of Information, and Communications Technology, Nicholous Dausi said the results were suprising, saying the economy has so far been on rebound.
Dausi said even the World Bank and the IMF have confirmed Malawi’s progress in economic management to be sound.
He also pointed out that the inflation—a term economists use to describe a sustained increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy over a period of time—is expected to drop further this year as government is targeting a single digit inflation rate by early next year
However, prices for other goods and services continue to rise.
On gender the survey revealed that both men and women express strong support for women equality and political leadership.
However, the survey noted that women still lags behind men in political participation and gender based discrimination remains a fairly common experience.
“The results suggest a need for strategic and better coordinated efforts to empowered women to be active in politics , as the environment seems conducive to their support,” reads the report in part.
The report also found that 72% say that women should have same chance as men of being elected to political office saying this reflect 11 % point increase compared to that of 2014.
Commenting on the survey, Chairperson of NGO GCN, chairperson, Mrs Emma Kaliya, said its time now that Government should be practical in promoting gender equality.
Kaliya said CSOs have done their part and its time for action.
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Is it true that there is no budgetary support since APM came to power? Is it true that he is the first president to start ruling without this support? If it is true then how do you expect him to turn economy around just like that? It took Stalin 20years to make Russia economically sound at the cost of 20 million human lives. a Malawi kulira too much
You said survey was done in December&January…This is june.Does the reflection make sense?
When a govet is aloof this what happens. It cant see the poor bleeding. APM is surrounded by very rich people and so he sees richness around him. Recall the line up that was hand shaping him. Those people are not poor. Those are the people that MBC, traditional chiefs and Dausi see and refer to. The problem is that we see Malawi differently that is why there are different assessment findings.. If Dausi was able to see what we see he would not be discrediting economic profile by experts.
Matandani, it’s good that women are becoming financially independent and I do not see any problem for them to be pompous and refuse to accept nonsense from men. For a long time, men have used financial muscle to torture women – violence, sleep with girlfriends and concubines. Azimayi tanyozeka for a long time and men including society forced us to accept shit. Now, many women are having the choice to say no to their husband divorce any man who fails in his duty or misbehaves. By the way, educated women can also have variety if a husband is failing to… Read more »
Ok mapeto ake kutha ndi edzi basi
afrobarometer does us more harm than good. i don’t think this kind of research findings is arequirement to help govt in policy formulation but to embarrass it. where are we going?
A Dausi, inflation yotsika inayamba ya thandiza a Malawi liti? Search me!!! Donot be fooled by World Bank and IMF sentiments. Whatever comes from these two institutions are always bitter pills. They just want poor countries to borrow more money and remain as poorer than before. Give credit where its due. This is a wake-up call to the sleeping Boma. One day the researchers will give results showing some positives to this government and we are waiting to hear what Dausi will say. I hope Dausi will continue saying that the researchers are still lying. Cry my Minister of refute… Read more »
Afrobarometer by name alone are non-partisan indeed but the researchers are partisan. Just imaging, the ratings are above 75% and you you say the economy is in bad shape. This only comes from daft researchers and commentators like one biased Kubalasa. Social researchers are not better placed to comment let alone conduct researches on the economy because they lack economic skills. Let them restrict themselves to social issues or else they are exposing their blatant ignorance despite having been educated to PhD level.
kkkk mind your ignorance as well. social issues can also be economic issues. Economics is a social science bwana. Inflation and unemployment are all economic issues.
Economics is part of social issues bwana. Musadziyalutse apa chonde.
guys we are sitting on a time bomb things are not okay for the majority of malawians, resources malawi has are not properly used for the good of malawian. panopa anthu akolola chimanga chambiri and if the government can authorise the sale at a good price like the last year one of k12500/bag of 50kgs some of these economic problems we are facing could be alleviated, but look now some rich probably ruling party agents are taking advantage of the situation to rob poor farmers in the villages by buy maize at k50/kg while the gvt is watching, who is… Read more »
MOYO SI CHIMANGA CHOKHA AMWENE. KWANU NDI KUTI INU. MUWONE MUNYUMBA MWANUMO NGATI MULI CHIMANGA CHOKHACKHA HEEEHEEDEE KUGANIZA KWINAKU NDI KWA NGOLONGOLIWADI EEE
ADAUSI ALI KU MCP ANAWONA ZAKUDA NGAKHALE NTHAWI YA KAMUZU OLO BREAD OSAMUWONA. NDE ANANGOTI EEEENDIFA MPHAWI MUNTHUNE TIYE KONKO KU MBAVAZI NANESO NDIKANENEPE, PANOPA MUKUWAWONA BWA? ANENEPATU .ZOKUBA ZAMUYANJA. KODI MUNYHU WOKUBA ANGANENE KUTI ANTHU AKUVUTIKA? ASIYENI AZAWELUZE NDI YAHWEH. CHENJEZO LANGA NALI. NDALAMA ZOKUBA MUSAMAKASIYE KU MPINGO YAHWEH SAKONDWERA MUZINGOMWERA NDI KUDYERA MA SOSEGI .
Dausi uyo, MUKUKUTA CHINANGWA, anganene chani?
Amakukuta chinangwa (osati kuchifuna koma because of POVERTY, umphawi), akuyenda pansi full time ndi tsapato ya full-saw kkkkkkk kamadutsa paka bridge ka matabwa from Chichiri Poly side to Chinyonga ku Blantyre. Milomo yitatuwa ndi njala yili mbu!!!, mapazi ali mbu!!! Kusowa ndi ya minibus imene, milomo mbu!!! ndi njala, dehydration ndi kukuta chinangwa kkkkkkk.
Ndiye anganene cha? He is referring to his own poverty alleviation not to that of the general population.