Mwanamvekha: Malawi among first nations to benefit from AfDB crisis fund

Malawi is set to benefit from special funding from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to support the importation of fuel and fertiliser, two of the country’s major consumers of scarce foreign exchange.

AfDB director general and acting vice-president for Africa, Abdou Kamara, said Malawi was among the first countries selected to benefit from the Bank’s Global Energy and Fertiliser Crisis Response Framework, designed to mitigate the impact of the Iran conflict.

Mr Kamara was speaking on the sidelines of the eighth Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (Koafec) Ministerial Conference in Seoul, South Korea, during a meeting with Finance Minister Joseph Mwanamvekha.

Mr Mwanamvekha said Malawi had, on the day, submitted its request for the funding.

He is scheduled to meet AfDB President Sidi Ould Tah on Wednesday.

The AfDB board has also approved $20.5 million, about K34 billion, for Malawi in direct budget support, following a request submitted in May this year.