NBS Bank urges Malawi’s Councils to turn revenue into results
NBS Bank has called on Malawi’s local councils to prove they can collect and manage money well before asking for more of it, saying devolution must transfer responsibility and accountability as well as funds.
Speaking in Blantyre on Thursday, Alfred Nhlema, on behalf of the chief executive of NBS Bank plc, made the remarks at the 20th Annual General Assembly of the Malawi Local Government Association (MALGA), where the bank is a platinum partner.
The assembly’s theme focused on fiscal devolution.
“Devolution is not simply the transfer of money. It is the transfer of responsibility. The transfer of accountability,” Nhlema said.
He warned that without such a shift, Malawi would have “decentralized administration without decentralizing prosperity.”
To illustrate his point, Nhlema compared Malawi’s councils with cities elsewhere in the region.
He said Kampala’s city authority more than doubled its own-source revenue between 2011/12 and 2014/15, rising from 41 billion to 85 billion Ugandan shillings through better systems and stronger administration.
He also pointed to Rwanda’s Imihigo performance contracts, under which local leaders commit to measurable results.
In 2014, Johannesburg raised 1.46 billion South African rand through a green bond to finance environmental projects, he said.
Nhlema asked why Kigali should be cleaner than Blantyre and why Kampala should collect revenue more efficiently than Malawi’s cities, answering that the difference lies in leadership and standards rather than in the people.
He urged councils to adopt digital revenue collection, cash management and transparent payment systems, saying such measures would make every kwacha visible and traceable.
NBS Bank, he said, was ready to explore practical digital collection solutions, secure payments, responsible financing and banking services for councils.
“The next chapter of Malawi’s development will not be written by intentions. It will be written by decisions,” he said.
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