Mwanamvekha urges MRA to drive revenue as foreign aid declines

Malawi’s Finance Minister has called on the national tax collector to step up revenue generation, warning that the country must become self-reliant as foreign aid drops and public debt mounts.

​Speaking at the Lilongwe Inland Depot following an inspection of the Mchinji-Mwami Border, Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralization Minister Joseph Mwanamveka urged the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) to enhance operational efficiency and maintain high service standards to help achieve the nation’s long-term economic strategy, Agenda 2063.

​”As a country, we are challenged. We have a lot of debts, and at the same time, donor support is coming down. So we want to now be depending on local resources,” Mwanamveka said.

​He explained that his visits to border checkpoints and inland depots were aimed at identifying on-the-ground operational bottlenecks and collaborating with MRA staff to build more effective collection strategies.

​Surpassing Targets

​Despite the tough economic backdrop, the tax agency has shown resilience. Mwanamveka praised the MRA for beating its revenue targets in the previous quarter and noted that performance figures for the current month remain on a positive trajectory.

​However, he cautioned against complacency: “My impression so far is that MRA is doing very well… but we are not relenting. We need to do more to collect more money.”

​Export Diversification and Import Substitution

​Beyond immediate tax collection, the government is leaning on a broader economic overhaul to narrow its trade deficit. Mwanamveka outlined plans to move away from over-reliance on traditional cash crops such as tobacco, tea, and coffee.

​Instead, the administration intends to boost exports of alternative agricultural commodities, including legumes like soya and groundnuts, while enforcing aggressive value-addition measures.

​To support local processing and domestic manufacturing, the government plans to introduce import surcharges and trade disincentives to curb non-essential imports. The Ministry of Finance will coordinate with the Ministries of Agriculture and Industry and Trade to protect domestic producers and advance import substitution.

​Zero Tolerance on Corruption

​Addressing governance issues within the tax administration, Mwanamveka issued a stern warning regarding ethics, urging MRA personnel to uphold absolute integrity.

​”If taxpayers are not paying the tax that they are supposed to pay just because they have given some money to somebody, it is the nation that loses out. It is the services that will suffer,” he warned, stressing that systemic corruption undermines public service delivery across the board.

​While no immediate anti-corruption measures were unveiled during the visit, the Minister confirmed that the government plans to address integrity issues across state institutions holistically.