Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, Dr Allan Chiyembekeza on Tuesday admitted that Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) is progressing well despite facing huge challenges. This claim by Chyembekeza comes hot amid complaints from various stakeholders that the programme has started late. Addressing journalists on present status of implementation of 2015/16 Farm Input Subsidy […]
President of Economic Association of Malawi (ECAMA) Henry Kachaje, has blamed politicians for turning the Farm Input Subsidy Programme (Fisp) into a political tool. Kachaje was speaking Wednesday in Lilongwe during a panel dialogue on hunger which Civil Society Agricultural Network (Cisanet) organised in conjunction with State of the Union (SOTU). The economist Kachaje said it is […]
The World Bank has described the Malawi government bankrolled subsidies as inefficiencies that are worsening the economic situation. However, the bank’s Malawi Economic Monitor, a by-annual newsletter has not said whether the government should abolish the subsidies or not. The World Bank statement came as opposition parliamentarians in the National Assembly on Tuesday called on […]
Minister of Agriculture Allan Chiyembekeza has partly blamed the delays in the distribution of farm inputs to bureaucracy in government over payments, saying they will now be direct directly at treasury. Chiyembekeza’s comment amid panic calls from the farmers and legislators to speed up the distribution as the country counts down to the onset of […]
Government has admitted that farm input programme has delayed this year and heaped the blame on suppliers and marketers. Minister of Agriculture Allan Chiyembekeza however said the delay will not affect the programme. “We will roll out next week, we were disappointed by our suppliers and marketers,” said the minister in an interview. The programme […]
Local suppliers have expressed concern over Malawi government’s decision to award large quantity of contracts of supplying fertilizer for Farm Input Subsidy Program (FISP) to suppliers of Asian origin. One of the concerned local supplier told Nyasa Times in Lilongwe that many local suppliers have been left out without considering them in supplying a commodity meant for this year’s subsidy. […]
World Bank has tipped Malawi and other sub-Saharan Africa countries who are continuing to grow, albeit at a slower pace, due to a more challenging economic environment, that there is need to embark on structural reforms to alleviate domestic impediments to growth. Growth will slow in 2015 to 3.7 percent from 4.6 percent in 2014, […]
Malawi’s farm input subsidy benefits the poor and can be part of a viable national development strategy. Agriculture is Malawi’s main economic sector. It generates one-third of GDP, half of total export earnings and two-thirds of employment. The farm input subsidy programme is a prime example of a large-scale development programme. It is designed to provide about half of […]
Malawi Government has been commended by UK Department for International Development (DFID) for instituting reforms that would make the Farm Input Subsidy Program (Fisp) more efficient and effective. The reforms include privatisation of procurement and distribution of fertiliser and seeds under Fisp. Head of DfID in Malawi, Jen Marshall, speaking during the 2014/15 FISP Evaluation […]
Smallholder farmers waiting to benefit from 2015-2016 Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) should begin to consider revising their budget now, the cost of buying two bags of subsidised fertilizer and seeds is now at K8500 from K1, 150. This means cost of contribution towards the FISP for each bag of fertiliser has gone up by […]
Some local entrepreneurs and the Indigenous Businesspersons Association of Malawi (IBAM) have spoken against government’s decision not to involve suppliers in this year’s Farm Input Subsidy (Fisp) programme, saying the move will escalate corrupt practices and benefit politically-connected individuals. Instead of calling for suppliers and transporters to tender for the supply of Fisp fertilizer and […]
Globally, the population is ageing and Malawi is no exception. The 2008 Population and Housing Census showed that four percent of the Malawi population comprised people aged over 65 years old. Although in percentage terms this may seem small, in reality it means over 530 000 older people out of the 13.1 million people counted. […]
The Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) Deputy National Coordinator, Osbourne Tsoka has said there has been “remarkable progress” in the distribution of commodities in this year’s programme with 90 percent of fertiliser distributed to the 1.5 million smallholder farmers. This year’s Fisp was marred with logistical problems which raised fears of a worst distribution season. […]
Just few weeks after the government launched this years’ Fertilizer Subsidy Programme, Police at Phalula in Malawi’s eastern district of Balaka are keeping in custody a 28-year old man for allegedly being found in possession of government subsidized fertilizer which was unlawfully acquired. Balaka police spokesperson, sub-inspector Joseph Sauka says the suspect Lacks Kapinga who […]
Malawi farmers can now afford a smile as government has finally launched the 2014/15 Farm Input Subsidy Programme (Fisp) amid financial constraints to dispatch the commodities to various areas. The programme was launched Tuesday in Chitipa, but some parts are yet to receive the subsidised inputs. Minister of Agriculture Dr Allan Chiyembekeza said suppliers had challenges with […]
Minister of Agriculture Allan Chiyembekeza suspected a foul play on this year’s Farm Input Subsidy Program (Fisp) which experience some hitches with some districts not yet provided with the coupons or fertiliser for distribution despite it being rainy season. Chiyembekeza in an interview monitored on public broadcaster MBC, questioned the delay by the Reserve Bank […]
Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development Allan Chiyembekeza on has contradicted Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Goodall Gondwe who said government has discontinued the programme started by the People’s Party (PP) administration of former president Joyce Banda on Farm Input Loan Programme (FILP) which was run parallel to the national Farm Inputs […]
Malawi’s new administration of Arthur Peter Mutharika has suspended the loan facility introduced by his predecessor Joyce Banda because of the numerous legal and financial problems discovered in the programme. The Farm Input Loan Programme (FILP) which was run parallel to the national Farm Inputs Subsidy Program (FISP) attracted criticism as to who the loan […]