Mutharika assures investors of support as Toyota Malawi clocks 50yrs

Malawi President Peter Mutharika has said his government is committed to supporting all foreign investors in the country as their investments go a long way in contributing to the economic development in form of taxes, job creation and foreign exchange generation.

Mutharika was speaking on Friday when he graced  celebrations of Toyota Malawi Limited on marking 50 years of existence and doing business in Malawi .

The President said he was pleased to be informed that Toyota Malawi has already embarked on projects that will transform the company from “a net importer to an exporter of local agricultural products”.

“These efforts will definitely contribute towards the generation of the much needed foreign exchange for Malawi and offset the import forex requirement of Toyota Malawi,” said Mutharika.

He went on to call upon the shareholders of Toyota Malawi to intensify their efforts of diversifying the company to a more export orientation in order to contribute to government efforts in transforming Malawi from a net importing nation to a net producing and exporting nation.

“Toyota Malawi contributions to the socio-economic development of the country are much appreciated. Toyota Malawi has contributed to the economic development of the country in many ways,” he said.

The Malawi leader said apart from the various vehicle models and value adding services provided by Toyota Malawi, the company has demonstrated to be a good corporate citizen by contributing to the social challenges Malawi faces in form of corporate social responsibility.

Mutharika further noted that the transport sector is very important for the development of any economy and Malawi is no exception.

“My Government holds in esteem the contribution of the transport sector to the economy. It is against this background that transport sector is one of the four priority sectors together with agriculture, energy and manufacturing that my Government believes can quickly spur rapid economic growth.

“As a demonstration of commitment to the transport sector, my Government has removed import duty, import excise and VAT on all minibuses that are zero to five years,” he explained.

Toyota Malawi golden jubilee was celebrated under the theme ‘Celebrating 50 years of partnership in Malawi’ in Lilongwe.

The company’s Managing Director Rosemary Mkandawire thanked Malawians for supporting the Toyota brand over the past 50 years.

She described the years as a mixed bag of good and challenging times but was quick to note that the company has seen more good times than bad ones.

“Toyota has been part of weddings, graduations, anniversary parties and other milestones for generations, from our grandfathers to the current generation and for some of our children and grand children,” said Mkandawire.

During the celebrations, Toyota Malawi Limited made a donation of the Toyota Land Cruiser ambulance to the Ministry of Health towards Safe Motherhood Initiative.

 

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