President Peter Mutharika and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is sleepwalking Malawi into an economic turmoil for having no clue to end the hunger and how to come out of economic crisis, comedian-cum-activist Micheal Usi has claimed. Usi, who is also deputy director of the Adventist church relief arm, the Adventist Relief Agency (ADRA) , […]
There is growing alarm, whether justified or otherwise, among the critics of President Peter Mutharika that perhaps he is too laid back for our liking. The accusation is that he takes time to roll up his sleeves and get dirty to confront the daily problems that are affecting Malawians. The President’s address in Zomba on […]
The crisis in Ministry of Health has dominated the Malawi press to buttress the fact that the southern African nation is going through a serious financial squeeze. “QECH dialysis unit ‘shuts down’” was the headline in The Nation, which detailed thatn Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH) in Blantyre has closed down its dialysis unit. The paper reports […]
A cross section of Malawians have intensified their calls for Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe to resign, arguing he has failed the country in recent times. In text messages to Capital Radio, some Malawians pushed the blame on the slump of the economy to Gondwe. Some of the texts urged President Peter Mutharika to appoint a youthful […]
Malawi’s Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe has expressed confidence in government efforts to stabilise the weakening Kwacha currency which has fallen more than 300 percent, to 715 to the dollar from around 160 since 2014 when President Peter Mutharika took power. Combined with a poor maize harvest, the teetering kwacha has pushed inflation to 25 percent […]
The Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) governor Charles ChukA remains confident the Kwacha currency will soon stabilize according to market fundamentals saying the country’s economy will not collapse. “RBM believes the kwacha exchange rate has over depreciated given the current level of foreign exchange reserves. The government fiscal operations have been significantly curtailed and domestic borrowing is […]
Yes, Finance and Economic Planning Minister Goodall Gondwe understands public finance management better than most of us. Yes, Gondwe is experienced—he has worked higher at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and has been in the kitchen of Malawi’s finance for decades. However, our economy, today, has worsened to a point where, not tomorrow but today, […]
For anybody who has eyes to see and ears to hear, this country is treading on dangerous waters. The food situation is getting worse by day and in villages people are literally sleeping on an empty stomach. Despite proclaiming to the contrary, Admarc has failed miserably to supply maize in all its depots across the […]
If, at the start of 2016, you expected your finance minister to deliver a forecast bristling with real hope, laced with the absolutely necessary reassurances for a jittery nation, you were to be disappointed. “The fate of the economy is in God’s hands”, Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe said last week. It’s quite iniquitous that deceitful politicians who have gotten Malawi into this mess over the […]
The Malawi Kwacha has weakened sharply to a record low against the dollar by 6.4 percent since the start of the year, Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe has confirmed the slump. The free fall of the local currency is the weakest level ever against the greenback and inflation is increasing becoming high pushing up the cost […]
By now it can be said without fear of contradiction that the Malawi economy is in doldrums and that while efforts may be underway in various forms to salvage it from complete collapse, planners are either far from a solution, or are unsure whether it will be possible to come to one. So sad is […]
Just a few days after Malawi’s leading donors of direct budget support – European Union (EU), Britain, Norway and Germany – have ruled out any hopes of budget support in the 2016/17 fiscal year, Malawi’s renowned development expert and University of Malawi Chancellor College Professor in Development Studies Dr. Blessings Chinsinga has warned that Malawi […]
It is 17th December, 2010. Ben Arous, Tunisia. A worn-out and distraught vendor and cart-pusher walks in the middle of traffic. There is a canister in his right hand. Unknown to the spectators is its content – gasoline. The 26-year old raises the vessel and douses himself that every square of his small body is covered […]
Life is becoming tougher by the day for ordinary Malawians in the face of escalating prices of essential goods and services and economics have urged the Peter Mutharika administration to deal with the rising cost of living. According to figures from National Statistical Office (NSO), the Malawi’s inflation —the rate at which prices of goods […]
Malawi Congress Party (MCP) spokesperson on finance Alexander Dzonzi has cast doubt over finance minister Goodall Gondwe prediction that the economy would rebound in May. Dzonzi said in a radio interview that it was wrong for Gondwe to base his facts on the unpredictable rainfall. Gondwe had earlier said he was upbeat the economy would […]
A 24 year old woman has died at Mponela Rural Hospital due to a ruptured uterus after authorities failed to refer her to Dowa district hospital because of lack of fuel. A private radio station Zodiak said on Sunday, Mponela health centre had informed officials at Dowa District Hospital but they could not send an […]
Economics is very complicated, not only as a discipline in academics but also as an aspect of people’s livelihood and government policy. Unfortunately, despite its complexities, economics is the most crucial aspect people’s lives, at household and government levels. At household level, I believe that every person is an economist because each one of makes […]
In one meeting which I attended, a question was asked; “What should Malawi stop doing to make economic progress?” One diplomat responded in just four words; “stop looking for excuses”. I can’t agree more. We seem to be too obsessed with finding and inventing excuses to justify our economic malaise and stagnation. We blame it […]