REPORT BY JUSTICE MAXON MBENDERA, SC CHAIRMAN OF THE MALAWI ELECTORAL COMMISSION DURING THE 8th NATIONAL ELECTIONS CONSULTATIVE FORUM (NECOF) MEETING

REPORT BY

JUSTICE MAXON MBENDERA, SC

CHAIRMAN OF THE MALAWI ELECTORAL COMMISSION

DURING THE 8th NATIONAL ELECTIONS CONSULTATIVE FORUM

(NECOF) MEETING

ON 13 NOVEMBER, 2015

HOTEL VICTORIA, BLANTYRE

• Fellow Commissioners,
• Honourable Leaders of Political Parties
• Your Excellencies members of the Diplomatic Corps and Representatives of all Development Partners
• Chief Elections Officer, your deputies and all members of staff of the Secretariat
• Paramount Chiefs
• The Chairperson for the Centre for Multi-Party Democracy (CMD)
• Secretaries General, Directors of Elections and all distinguished political party leaders.
• Senior Government Officials
• Distinguished Members from the Civil Society Organisations                                                                                                                              
• Distinguished Members of the Press
• Ladies and Gentlemen

Good Morning,

It is good to meet again after a year and four months. Last time we met here was on 4th July, 2014 for a post-mortem of the 2014 Tripartite Elections. Since that time, a lot has happened.  Your Commission has been communicating through various mediums.  It is not my intention to present a comprehensive report of what has happened over that period.  That said, I will still endeavour to report, albeit briefly on the issues that have transpired.

Distinguished delegates, the May 2014 tripartite elections are long gone.  Many of you may be aware that honoraria for the 89,656  poll workers was paid by Development Partners through UNDP.  The electronic system of paying the poll workers was adopted.  The Commission experienced a lot of problems through this system.  However, the UNDP has since paid almost everybody who took part in the exercise.  We are aware that there are still claims that have not been honoured. (PPS)

UNDP is auditing and reconciling the whole exercise. The negotiations are continuing to see how these outstanding claims can be settled.

I should also mention that we still have outstanding issues with the Police. There were some police officers who filled forms and got a 50 percent advance payment for their honorarium. However, when it came to deployment, they were unavailable as they had been assigned to other duties. These were replaced by other police officers who were available for deployment but never got the advance payment. We are working with the Inspector General to ensure that those Officers that got the money but were not deployed to the Election centres refund the money and those that worked have received. (receive their money or be paid)

The Commission regrets that the exercise has taken this long to have all staff paid for their dues for working on May 20, 2014. However, we will pursue the process to ensure that all outstanding claims are concluded.

Update on fire which gutted a warehouse in Lilongwe,

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, You can recall that our Warehouse in Lilongwe was gutted by fire on 15thJuly, 2014.  The Commission lost property worth millions of Kwachas in that inferno.  We engaged the police to carry out investigations on the cause of the fire.  The Police are still conducting investigations on the matter.  The Commission will share the findings once the report is out.

Status for court cases for 2014 elections,

During the May 20, 2014 the Commission, through the Legal Unit, received 360 cases.  We are were able to attend to most of them without court action. Of this total, 26 ended up in court. As we stand today some of the issues have been concluded while others are still hanging.

Out of the 26 cases, 7 Cases were dismissed with costs in favour of the Malawi Electoral Commission. The Legal Unit is currently preparing bill of costs for these cases. A total of 8 cases were withdrawn by mutual consent while one 1 case is still in court and is awaiting judgement. Ten (10) cases still in the court that are waiting for hearing and there are two 2 cases that are in the Supreme Court.

By-elections: past and upcoming

Due to various reasons, the Commission has since conducted 9 local government by-elections and 2 parliamentary by-elections.

The Commission has noted that turnout in the by-elections especially on Local Government By-elections is not satisfactory. The highest percentage voter turnout in the August 2015 by-elections was 42.72 percent registered in Luchenza Ward while the lowest was 13.42 percent in Zomba Central Ward. The average voter turnout was25.87 percent. This was slightly lower than what was registered during the by-elections of October 7, 2014. The highest turnout was 40.87 percent and the lowest being 12.12 percent. The average was 26.14 percent. This is an improvement if compared to results of previous Local Government Elections in 2000 whereby turnout was 14 percent and was even lower in subsequent Local Government By-elections then as the turnout figures could go lower than 14 percent.

At the moment we have Zomba Chisi Constituency, Mtope Ward in Mchinji West Constituency and Ngala Ward in Lilongwe Msozi North Constituency where there are vacancies.  We did indicate that the by-elections to fill these vacant seats would be held in December this year but we could not go ahead because of funding.  However, am glad to inform you that the Ministry of Finance has just released K200 million for the by-elections. We will soon release a calendar that will show when we will hold the by-elections.

Biometric voter registration

The Commission wanted to implement a biometric voter registration in the run up to the May 20, 2014 electionsas you are all aware. However, stakeholders  expressed reservation on time and technical factors and the idea was shelved.

With challenges experienced with the Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) system, every stakeholder now should be supporting the Commission in its quest to migrate to the Biometric Voter registration System (BVR).

The Commission is pushing for this idea. After the elections on May 20, 2014, UNDP hired a consultant, Africore, to conduct a feasibility study on implementation of the BVR system. The consultant recommended that the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) work in collaboration with the National Registration Bureau (NRB) in coming up with a reliable National Population Register from which the MEC would then extract its voters’ register.

To this end MEC, NRB and UNDP held the first High Level meeting on 18th February 2015 to see the feasibility of such a venture. The meeting resolved that a Joint Technical Committee be established to thrash out the issues and report back to the High Level meeting.  I am pleased to welcome officials from National registration Bureau in this meeting.  They will present an update to NECOF.

Capacity building in line with the electoral cycle approach

The Commission has adopted a cycle approach to elections management in preparations for 2019. To that effect there are several trainings which the Commission has implemented to build the capacity of stakeholders. These include:

• BRIDGE training on Electoral Technology, Financial and Strategic Planning funded by African Union held in Liwonde from 29th June to 3rd July, 2015. It targeted MEC Commissioners and staff.
• BRIDGE training on Electoral Systems that targeted MEC, political parties and members of the Task Force on Electoral Reforms. It was funded by European Union and held in Blantyre from 9th to 12th June, 2015.
• BRIDGE training on Gender and Elections funded by European Union which was held in Blantyre and attracted the representation of political parties, Civil Society Organisations and Government Departments. It was held in Blantyre from 1st to 4th September, 2015.
• BRIDGE training on Electoral Dispute Resolution funded by the African Union which was held in Blantyre from 7th to11th September, 2015. It targeted Secretaries General, MEC Commissioners and staff.
• BRIDGE training on Elections and Boundary Delimitation which targeted MEC Commissioners, staff andSecretaries General and Director of Elections of political parties. This was funded by European Union andheld in Blantyre from 5th to 9th October, 2015.

All these topics were chosen to address a particular deficiency experienced during the May 2014 elections. 

Electoral reform activities

To ensure that electoral reforms are implemented in a coordinated manner, the Commission, NICE and MESN who had earlier on been involved in the reform agenda individually, brought together interested and relevant stakeholders to form a task force on electoral reforms. The coming together has given the taskforce the opportunity to benefit from the expertise and advice of the multi-sectoral stakeholders in the election business. The task force has been engaging several stakeholders on the issues that were generated requiring reforms.  We shall have a full session on the reforms.

The leaked draft Investigative audit report.

There is a draft report of an Investigative Audit by the Internal Audit Committee of the Ministry of Finance that unfortunately leaked to the media and generated negative publicity for the Commission. Some media reports based on this draft have alleged that is a K1.6 billion cashgate at the Commission. As a matter of practice, in all audits, the auditor will form an impression of what he has found. He then sends his queries to Management to test his findings by seeking explanations and supporting documents. If no explanations are given or no documents are provided he is entitled to conclude that the anomalies are real. He then proceeds to finalise his report.

If explanations are provided, he must include them in his report if he is not convinced of their veracity. If the explanations and supporting documents clear the query, then the issue which featured in the draft must be dropped from the report.

However, the current draft in circulation does not include responses from the Malawi Electoral Commission Management. The auditors held an exit meeting with MEC on July 15, 2015. MEC Management wrote its responses on August 4, 2015 and submitted for incorporation into final report. However, there was a mix up at the Ministry of Finance that delayed the responses to reach the auditors on time. 

In the aftermath of the media reports on this issue, the Commission has written the Secretary to the Treasury to expedite the whole process and have the final report released.

Although there is high temptation to reveal the responses now in view of the damage, the leaked preliminary report might cause, the Commission will restrain itself as doing so will be unprocedural. We would rather be exonerated by the final report than going to the media to justify our innocence with the information we have. We hope you will understand because to us a draft audit is work in progress that can change at any time. Therefore it is no fit for public consumption. 

COMMUNICATION STRATEGY

I am pleased to inform you, distinguished delegates that the Commission has developed a Communication Strategy.  Our heartfelt thanks to the EU DGP who engaged Mr. Mark Jeffrey, an international consultant and Mr. Stanley Nyirenda, a local consultant, to help develop the strategy.

The development of the Communications strategy epitomises the mission and commitment of the Commission to effectively communicate and share information with its stakeholders.

The process leading to the development of the strategy involved consultations with various stakeholders that included media, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), disability and women organisations and staff from the Commission.  This exercise took place between 12 November, 2014 and 27 February, 2015.  In addition to the consultations, the consultants also did an extensive desk study on available literature, communication for the Commission in pursuance with its mission, vision and the current strategic plan.  The strategy is also intertwining with the Civic and Voter Education strategy which was developed in 2013.  I cannot say hitherto the Commission was not communicating, we were and we are still doing a good job.  We have two consecutive awards to attest to this.  But we needed a guiding document that will provide the benchmarks against which we can measure our efforts and that can also help improve our weak spots.  

Conclusion

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, this has been a long report

I thank you all for the attention

May God bless you all and bless our country

To Tap, or Not To Tap, Water From Mulanje Mountain?

Well…natural resources belong to the President

From the look of things, there are some people who are out to transform Malawi into a money-making factory whose product is designed to make a relatively few wealthy while impoverishing the rest of the population.

I have been compelled to arrive at this conclusion after reflecting on suggestions from some disgruntled quarters that the Blantyre Water Board (BWB) —which stands to benefit from a credit facility provided by the Indian Government to the Malawi Government with the objective of tapping water from Mulanje Mountain—should not get the natural resource for free.

To me, such a suggestion sounds like the last tyre nut to fly off our wheel of national unity.

To begin with, the suggestion is so outrageous that it is inhumane. I have two reasons for saying that. One. It is not BWB that has secured— or plans to secure— the funds from the Government of India. In fact, I did not get the news that the Government of Malawi discussed the loan terms with India from BWB; I got the news from the President of the Republic of Malawi.

Now, there is something ‘national’ about the individual called Head of State and Government in the sense that the occupant of that office is elected by the people of Malawi, including those from Mulanje. Two. Some ‘crazy’ laws in this country declare, implicitly and explicitly, that all natural resources in the land belong to the President of the Republic of Malawi.

In this case, since it’s the President who has secured the loan from India, there is no need to pay for accessing water from Mulanje Mountain. The natural resources on the mountain belong to the ‘national human being’ who has secured the deal with India!

In addition, Malawi belongs to all of us. Unlike countries such as Nigeria, where it is normal and Constitutional for states to be autonomous since the West African country’s constitution provides for the existence of federal states, Malawi is not a federal state. That’s why there are no restrictions imposed on people, or companies, who wish to operate in any part of the country.

It does not make sense, therefore, that we should start imposing monetary restrictions on our brothers and sisters who want to tap natural resources from one part of the country to another.

In fact, more than any other issue, Malawians need to portray a group consciousness— that feeling that we belong to each other— on issues of natural resources such as water, forest resources, mineral resources, among others. More so because the issue of natural resources’ utilisation has been at the centre of turning points— both positive and negative—in the history of developed nations.

However, these ‘turns’ have often been for the worse, largely due to selfish motives such as those being advanced by those who do not want Blantyre residents to enjoy the free benefits of group consciousness. No wonder, countries that are rich in minerals are often said to be courting some ‘natural resource curse’. Whatever that means.

We should, therefore, not entertain divisive ideas. Of course, patriotism is a bloated issue, but we can, still, make the best out of it, instead of looking for opportunities to squeeze a few kwacha out of resources that belong to all of us.

What we need to do is to tone down all selfish sentiments and display a sense of humanism. After all, Mulanje is part of Malawi. The possibility of other Malawian citizens tapping a natural resource from the border district should not provide fertile ground for thoughts that may, in the end, just turn Mulanje into a little world that shuts out the rest of the universe.

Towing this retrogressive line of thinking would, definitely, run counter to the principles of Umunthu. Just Recently, Joseph Mfutso-Bengo, Professor of bioethics at the College of Medicine— a constituent college of the University of Malawi— emphasised the importance of Umunthu, which can best be described as moral capital, in national affairs. Umunthu looks at one’s needs in the context of other people’s needs.

“Africans consider what Umunthuology says. Umunthu is a basic attribute of Bantu ethics in Africa and recognises that while the biological requirement to be human is necessary, it is not the cause of being human. This means to be a human being is not what makes one to be human; one obtains that attribute through a relationship. So, Umunthuology advocates that ‘I am because we are; we are, therefore, I am’.  A rational human being strives to balance the common interest, public good with personal interest,” Mfutso-Bengo observed.

We should, therefore, not allow selfish interests to over-rule our obligations to the nation. When selfishness dominates, the nation loses out in the sense that cases of violence go on the rise. Malawians must do their best to maintain their Violence Contentment Cost which, according to the Global Peace Index, stands at 7 percent of our [Malawi’s] Gross Domestic Product.

Bengo warned that “We are slowly losing it”. These incidents may take us on a fast lane to loosing it.

From the literati to the literally

...A look at Alfred Msadala's ‘War Drums are Beating: Discourses of the Anti-Hill’

In literature, everyone appears to be faking life.  Even permanent structures, such as houses and roads and government establishments, seem temporary.

Ironically, one ‘excavator’ has discovered bits of truth from the make-believe— or fictitious—stories and lives found in literature. The excavator happens to be writer and Malawi PEN president, Alfred Msadala.

The experienced writer has compiled the hidden truths behind the veil of fiction books in his latest book, ‘War Drums are Beating: Discourses of the Anti-Hill’.

“I have heard that, sometimes, it is difficult to connect authors to their work of fiction, and that the persona in a work of art may not necessarily serve as a reflection of the author’s life. But this depends on the type of book one is dealing with,” says Msadala, justifying how he still managed to excavate the truth about authors from the actions of personae in the portrayed authors’ works.

“For example, that argument may work when it comes to the publication of non-fiction books. Let’s take the example of the author of a Physics book. The book can, definitely, not reflect the author’s life because it’s about set truths. All the reader may appreciate is the fact that the author has deep knowledge of Physics.

“However, when an author comes up with a work of fiction, their life is, somehow, reflected in it. This is so because some experiences [of the writer] may be flashed upon in fiction books,” says Msadala.

Portraits

Some of the 140 writers whose works have been portrayed in the 450-page book are Bessie Head, Jolly Max Ntaba, Yvonnie Vera, Thomas Hardy, Mark Twain, Rhoda Zulu, Brighton Uledi-Kamanga, Gil-Won Lee.

Msadala says, by bringing into the mix local and international writers, he has squeezed Malawi and the world into 450 pages.

From the way Msadala has analysed the work of, say, Zimbabwean author Tsitsi Dangrembga’s ‘Nervous Conditions’, one quickly appreciates the fact that Msadala is able to excavate some bits of reality from the author’s fictitious personae by relating to the time the works of art were published.  

For instance, he looks at the authors’ real life: their historical background, their real inner struggles about, say, apartheid, feminism. That’s where the truth comes in. Apartheid [in South Africa] was, for example, just a border away from Dangrembga’s Zimbabwe; feminism was, and is, real, and, most importantly, the author is real.

This applies to Kenyan writer, Ngumi Kibera’s book ‘Beyond the Darkness’, too. In the book, Kibera depicts life in some of the rural parts of Kenya by carefully depicting the troubles endured by a girl in a single-parent situation.

Through the narrative, Msadala is able to pick out issues such as challenges faced by the girl child, largely fuelled by stereotypes, moral decadence, as well as governance issues. Msadala is, therefore, able to analyse the storms in the author’s life through the struggles encountered by the girl.

That’s not all, though. Msadala also employs the universality of the issues— say, governance— in drawing comparisons with Malawi. He says Malawi also faces governance issues; that the Malawian girl child sometimes finds herself in a similar situation to the persona in ‘Beyond the Darkness’; and that the police do not always care.

If they [police] care; then, there is nobody to take care of them [police officers] themselves. 

“The difference between this book and my other books is that, this time, I want to reach out to non-literary minds. You know people often say that literature is, sometimes, too technical and that, sometimes, it doesn’t address those who are not immersed in it. So, what I have done is to take literary works to the so-called literally minds,” Msadala says, adding:

“As far as I am concerned, this is a celebration of Malawian writers— I have actually discussed over 100 of them in the book— and this is a unique and rare occasion where most writers of my age will converge [at the launch]. Again, the book serves as a meeting point in the sense that, while some of the featured authors are still alive and others are dead, the dead and the living have been brought together in the book. So, while reunion of the dead and living is impossible in real life; I have made it possible in the book.” 

 Some of the points raised in ‘War Drums are Beating: Discourses of the Anti-Hill’ will resonate with readers of Literary Talk column in The Sunday Times,one of Times Group’s publications.

“Of course, some of the articles have appeared in shortened form in The Sunday Times. But, in this case, readers will get the long version. Just that, now, I am looking at Literary Theory and analysing how it applies to the everyday life of human beings. Again, I am appealing to readers of all ages,” says Msadala, who started contributing to The Sunday Times in 2005.

Not that all featured authors are fiction writers, though. Under the topic ‘Colleagues’, one will find names such as James Chikago, who authored a book on One Village One Product; Emmanuel Chinunda, who has authored books on customer care, apart from  being a columnist for Times Group; James Kalaile, who authored a book on lay magistrates; Qabaniso Malewezi; Mufunanji Magalasi; G.W. Gwengwe,  among others.

Msadala says he decided to include them because they have inspired him— and Malawians— in one way or the other.

Road travelled

However, the problem associated with analysing the works of classic writers such as Thomas Hardy is that one runs the risk of repeating what others have already written somewhere in the world.

But Msadala says he sidesteps such risks by clinging to the boat of personal opinion.

“My writing is opinionated. I have tackled the issues the way they appeal to me personally. The way a work of art appeals to me will, definitely, differ from the way the same work of art appeals to society at large. I think that’s a safe net. Again, I have been very carefully in weighing how the issues fit our society. I believe that, by exposing some things, I may help bring solutions to them,” says Msadala.

While Msadala— who, apart from serving as Malawi Pen president, is also the president for Book Publishers Association of Malawi— is a well-published author with 14 books, one striking thing is that he had never published a Chichewa book.

“Of course, I am yet to publish a Chichewa book but I have some Chichewa published works. I have done a bit of poetry in Chichewa, a good example being ‘Kufa Saferana’. Some of my works, such as ‘Chaka China Chimodzi’ [One More Year], have been translated into Chichewa,” he admits.

‘Chaka China Chimodzi’ was translated by Wisdom Nkhoma in his [Nkhoma’s] book ‘Mphamvu ya Kondane ndi Nthano Zazifupi Zina’. The book was published by Chancellor College Publications. 

But, maybe, his reluctance to make a foray into Chichewa book publication may be attributed to the fact that he is surrounded by more English books than those in other languages in the library he has turned into a literary world.

His working room is adorned the writings of Joseph Conrad, Jack Mapanje, John Chobe, , Homer, William Shakespeare, Mzati Mkolokosa (essay writing), Bronte Sisters, Chinua Achebe , Hangson Msiska, J.K. Rowling, Harry Porter, Tito Banda, David Lubadiri, Nixon Mindano, Henrik Ibsen, Jolly Max Ntaba.

Other notable publications are ‘Malawi: Lake of Stars’ by Frank Johnston and Michael Mutisunge Phoya, ‘Malawi Parliament’ by Henry Chimunthu Banda, ‘Pain and Love’ by Paul G. Paseli, ‘Barack Obama and African Diaspora’ by Paul Tiyambe Zeleza, ‘I Will Try’ by Legson Kayira, ‘Malawi in Crisis: The 1950s/60 Nyasaland State of Emergency’, Legson Kayira’s ‘I Will Try’, among others.

Some of Msadala’s works include ‘Church of Christ the King at 50’, ‘Ten Tidal Waves’, ‘Sprouts of Dowa Hills’, ‘Mangadzi was Here and Other Stories’ (co-edited with Zondiwe Mbano), ‘Norwegian Literature: A Malawian Appraisal’, ‘Neighbour’s Wife’, ‘We Lost Track of Ausi’, ‘Destined for Great Things’, ‘One, Steve Chimombo’, and ‘Reminiscence’.

Whatever the case, Msadala has done the undoable: Uniting the living and the dead in a literary communion called ‘War Drums are Beating: Discourses of the Anti-Hill’.

Hopes, Broken Dreams of Mwanza Communities

An imposing transformer, replete with shiny copper wires, stands against the darkness at Mtsamika Trading Centre in Mwanza, some nine kilometres from Mwanza District Council offices. More than anything else , however, the transformer and copper wires are nothing more than a promise: they have been there for two years without being useful to the people of Kapisi 1 and Kapisi 2 villages in Traditional Authority (T/A) Nthache area.

“When Escom officials erected the polls, they promised that they would connect us to the national hydro-electric power grid within two months. It’s now two years,” says Michael Sambo, a motorcyclist I hired to take me to Kapisi 2 Village, which serves as the border between Malawi and Mozambique in Mwanza Central Constituency.

Still, in spite of the fact that the transformer and copper lines serve as both a promise, and symbol of the broken dream of hydro-electric power to the people of Mwanza Central Constituency, the transformer still shone against the moonlight last Sunday evening. The sight was mocking to the eye as, instead of transforming its own power and supplying it to the people, the transformer could only shine against the light emanating from the moon.

Ironically, the constituency is the abode of some of the country’s political heavyweights, namely Davis Katsonga — the current Member of Parliament — and Nicholas Dausi, the National Intelligence Bureau director.

Indeed, one can see Dausi’s village, and the iron-roofed houses that adorn it, from Kapisi 2. The iron sheets shone brightly against the noon-day sun. The fact, however, is that the houses are not connected to the national hydro-electric power grid. The transformer that imposes itself against the darkness at Mtsamika Trading Centre serves as the last line between darkness and hydro-electric power.

“They use their own power [in Dausi’s village]. You talk of solar power and the like,” Sambo informs me.

But electricity is not the only issue here. Health wise, the act of accessing healthcare services is akin to sacrifice.

“Expectant women bear the brunt of public service neglect here. To access public medical services, they face the choice between a rock and a hard place. For example, they either have to go to Kunenekude Clinic, which is located between seven and nine kilometres from here, or Mwanza District Hospital, which is reachable across steep slopes and mountainous areas,” says Patrick Thukuta, one of the chief’s advisors in Kapisi 2 Village.

“Either way, it’s hard for women, and for all of us. We, really, need health facilities that are accessible,” he adds.

One of the women in Kapisi 1 Village, who identifies herself as Mayi Chatsika, says women are sometimes compelled to rely on herbal medicine for diseases such as Malaria, pneumonia, influenza, among others.

“Sometimes, especially with malaria, things get out of hand and some women are forced to go to either Kunenekude clinic on Mwanza Health Centre because of deteriorating situations. People often die of Malaria plus-plus here because, surrounded by mountains that are rich in natural forests, the temptation to forsake scientific medicine and opt for herbal medicine is high,” says Chatsika.

And, against these precarious health conditions, and, even when hydro-electric power remains a dream for the people of Kapisi 2, comes the problem of refugees.

People fleeing the conflict in Monjo, Mtengechiti, Chisanja, Chinyanje, among other areas, in Mozambique have found refugee in the so-called shortfalls of Kapisi 2. Only four families out of the 18 families I found last Sunday only had medicine for health ‘troubles’ such as headache, pneumonia, but not for Malaria and other diseases.

But, at least, they found the smiles and warm-heartedness of the Malawians in Kapisi 2 Village comforting and, perhaps, beyond the fear of ill health and darkness at nightfall. After all, the darkness and shortage of medical drugs are less lethal than the swiftness of the bullets they have fled back home.

“You see, things are getting worse back home. Unknown people are now torching people’s houses and killing those they find in the houses. Things have become worse since warring factions heard that some people have started fleeing to Malawi. So, we accept whatever situation we find ourselves in,” says one of the female refugees from Mozambique.

She speaks typical Chichewa. She understands Chichewa. Malawi must be home, her second home.

“That’s the most important thing; being safe, being free from fear. The other things will definitely fall into place,” she adds.

While healthcare delivery and the provision of hydro-electric power remain a challenge, however, the same cannot be said of schools. From Mwanza District Hospital to Kapisi 2 [along the paved, dusty road, that is], one comes across three primary schools, including the one at Mtsamika Trading Centre close to the Catholic Church.

“We cannot lie about education challenges; we have schools, we have teachers, and we have willing pupils. Just recently, the government posted teachers to Mtsamika,” says Thukuta.

Same district, different challenges

While T/A Nthache’s subjects hope against despair that things will one day change for the better, those under other traditional leaders grapple under a different challenge: stalled development projects.

For instance, Sub-T/A Govati last year complained that the rate at which development projects were being abandoned was alarming.

“We have a lot of white elephants in Mwanza. From Thambani, which falls in my area, and other faraway places, we simply have so many of these. Politics seems to be perpetuating the trend,” Govati says, adding:

“We had a situation at Thambani (Trading Centre) where two houses meant for health workers remained uncompleted for years. Again, at Kalanga Primary School, a teacher’s house built through the efforts of the Area Development Committee (ADC) did not reach window level some three, four years after the project begun.”

Govati is not alone in the situation, though. T/A Kanduku recently raised concerns about the same issues.

“For example, we have the case of Futsa Community Day Secondary School. Construction of a school block, courtesy of the European Union, started in 2009 but, up to now, nobody knows when the school will open its doors to our children because there is no tangible progress. In fact, some people are using the school block as a hall,” Kanduku says.

As a result, pupils bear the brunt of the neglect. For instance, those from neighbouring areas such as Tulonkhondo have to cover a distance of more than eight kilometres to access education facilities at Thawale Community Day Secondary School in the district.

But this, as many other stories, could just be a tip of the iceberg.  

Festivals: Thin Line Between Too Much, Nothing

A ‘huge’ silence fills the air after the rolling of the last drum of festivals’ season, the silence lasting between one year and as long as two years.

Then, when one festival organiser opens the door, the ‘silent’ scene turns into a sea of activity: One great festival follows another, and another, and another within months so close to each other that the situation comes close to a motor race.

It is a situation akin to a beer-drinking party as it gives the impression that event organisers with concepts not very different from each other have started talking at once. It is like they are all talking at once, or one immediately talking after the other, without giving each other ample time for the message to sink in. It is, in a way, a confused case — no one hears the other out!

Maybe the organisers feel like, after one festival’s patrons have enjoyed the party, they feel drowsy, and that quickly organising another festival gives the patrons a chance to blink and feel fresh, more or less, again.

Whatever the case, those drunken moments are upon us, yet again. Between Friday, September 25, and Sunday, September 27, patrons from Malawi and abroad descended on the beaches of Lake Malawi at Sunbird Nkopola in Mangochi. It is a festival, one of Malawi’s international headline festivals, dubbed The Lake of Stars, a big place with three performance stages.

On these three stages, the past met the present as the likes of Fumbi Jazz Band rubbed shoulders with the Sonyes of this world. Fumbi is known for, among other songs, the hit ‘Tiyimbe Nyimbo Zotamanda’ while Sonye, real name Sonjezo Kandoje, is the brains behind the controversial hit ‘Tsika Msungwana’, which gender activist Emma Kaliya says demeans women.

The Moods Malawi, former Botswana Big Brother Africa representative Zeus and our own Lomwe, Tilinanu Children’s Choir, Lusubilo Band, Patrick Simakweli, Third Eye, Zimbabwe’s Mokoomba Band, Takula Band [featuring the likes of Peter Mawanga], Dikamawoko Dance and Drumming Troupe, EJ Von Lyric and bFAKE from South Africa, Rainmaker, Sally Nyundo are some of the artists and bands that had their turn to impress on the sun-smitten beach of Nkopola.

And, like all refreshing things, the festival came and went. 

Barely a week later — five days after the curtain closed on the Lake of Stars in Mangochi — some of the patrons who trooped to Mangochi met at the Blantyre Arts Festival (Baf) in the country’s commercial city. The venue is the Blantyre Cultural Centre, formerly French Cultural Centre.

The festival started with a carnival from Blantyre Old Town to Civic Centre, the headquarters of Blantyre City Assembly. The Black Missionaries and Anthony Makondetsa showed people that they are made of sterner music stuff on Friday, when the festival, which started as another joke in 2009 before taking its place as a serious affair over the years, opened its doors to the world. Ever-green South African gospel singer, Rebecca Malope, also performed on Saturday.

Other artists who jumped up and down the beach-less stage, while exhausting the reserves in their choral chords, included Tanzania’s Baba Watoto Acrobatics, the student of veteran Zimbabwean musician Oliver Mtukudzi, namely Munya, Germany’s The Great Grandpot and Nonkhululeko from South Africa. Giddes Chalamanda did not miss out, just as Patience Namadingo, Waliko Makhala, Black Syndicate Band, Ethel Kamwendo Banda, Home Grown African, Dalma Theatre, Black Syndicate Band Agorosso and Muhanya also availed themselves.

In addition, poetry and drama shows, film screening, photography exhibitions and traditional dances spiced the event.

However, this does little to conceal the fact that Baf has come fast on the heels of the Lake of Stars; in fact, too close for the cash wallet’s sake.

But, according to the Malawian script of doing things, these festivals are not enough, despite one coming so fast after another that they nearly collided, literally— one falling on top of another.

Exactly 20 days after Baf— and less than a month after the Lake of Stars— comes a new festival-kid on the block: The Malawi Film Festival. The festival, a brain-child of the Film Association of Malawi (Fama), opens its doors to the world from October 23 to 25. The venue is the Capital City, Lilongwe.

Why should Malawian and foreign patrons ‘entertain’ a ‘huge’ silence [from the time people endure the situation where festivals are nowhere on the events’ calendar to the period when one festival comes so fast after another that they nearly collide, literally] and an overdose of happiness during the festivities’ season? Are festivals the only thing happening in people’s lives? 

The case for festivals

Baf executive director, Thom Chibambo, does not subscribe to the idea that, since Baf has come fast on the heels of the Lake of Stars, then, the act smacks of duplication.

“To begin with, the Lake of Stars and Baf have different target audiences. They [Lake of Stars] target international and local audiences and we court ordinary people; people like you and me. I am talking of people who cannot afford to go to the lake and camp there. We, therefore, make it possible for them to appreciate art without digging too much into the pocket. Patrons can come and return home,” says Chibambo.

Added Chibambo: “Secondly, we want to help Malawians appreciate the many dimensions of our culture through art. There are many ways of promoting culture and the arts industry is one of them, hence our focus on the arts. You may wish to know that Baf offers Malawi the opportunity to appreciate culture and traditional practices through dances, songs, poetry, among other artistic forms. So, I don’t think the fact that we had another festival may affect our objectives.”

Chibambo adds that, since Baf targets those who appreciate art at reasonable charges, even those who patronise other festivals may find it necessary to attend.

“Look, if someone could afford to spend a week at the lake, paying accommodation costs and the like, I don’t think they can fail to come to Baf and appreciate the performances,” argues Chibambo.

Chibambo also dived into the debate of whether there is anything called Malawi culture, saying Malawians have values which are molded by cultural beliefs, customs and traditions. He said art, in that regard, also serves as a means of transmitting cultural values.

“Malawians have their own culture, and cultural practices— which shape our value system— vary from area to area, from people to people. What do you think happens during initiation ceremonies? It’s the transmission of culture.

“In much the same way as cultural values are transmitted through initiation ceremonies, the same values can be transmitted through the arts, hence our idea to develop the concept of the arts festival. It’s a festival where cultural values are appreciated through the artist’s perception,” said Chibambo.

Film Association of Malawi president, Ezaius Mkandawire, also believes that the film festival is a justifiable activity, and hence sees nothing wrong with it coming so close after other festivals.

“We are not duplicating issues as far as we know there is no festival that has given film space. We are also looking at the festival a development project for the industry. As for festivals being many, we are looking at using Lilongwe in the centre of Malawi which has no festival in terms of geography,” says Mkandawire.

Mkandawire adds that the objective of the festival is also different from the others, observing that “We are looking at building a pool of future filmmakers. The festival has a component of training”.

Says Mkandawire: “We are also cultivating a cinema-going culture. Something that can spur the growth of the industry. Our festival has films from Senegal, South Africa, Mali, among other countries. We will also premier a film called ‘Lilongwe’.

He says the festival is premised on the idea of promoting the film industry and, through film viewers’ appreciation of artists’ work, the festival would go a long way in ridding local filmmakers of that irritable sense called hibernation.

Whatever the case [for or against festivals], one cannot help but appreciate that there is that moment of festivals in the September-October air. It could be that people feel like spending some time away from ‘real’ life, to hang out, and festivals could be one of their answers to not wanting to get stuck at home.

Thus far, the festival doors remain wide open, and patrons have already thrown themselves through the doors of the Lake of Stars and Baf, and basked in the rich ‘smell’ of poetry and music and drama and traditional music and stuff like that. 

Long road to Female Condom Republic

Officially sanctioned, but by no means commonly used, female condoms have taken their place in the anonymity of most women’s minds.

This fact is best illustrated at Namphungo Trading Centre in the area of Traditional Authority (T/A) Juma in Mulanje district. Records at Namphungo Health Centre indicate that, while the number of the youth who sought Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) Services rose from 60 to 600 between June 2013 and June 2014, there was a pronounced gap between the quantity of male and female condoms, respectively, demanded by the youth.

No wonder, the number of male condoms distributed increased from 400 [before 2013] to 2, 100 per month, while the number of female condoms distributed increased from zero to an average of 80 condoms per month. This are the records that a team of Media Aids and Health Watch members found when they toured the area in November 2014.

Compared to Lilongwe, however, Mulanje’s female population may be described as ‘progressive’. Joneha [Network of Journalists Living with HIV] Newsletter indicates in its August 2014 edition that the women of Kalamula Village in T/A Chitukuta, Lilongwe, have been shunning female condoms altogether.

The newsletter quotes one of the area’s community nurses, Mercy Chamvula, as saying that, while the health facilities in the area runs out of male condoms more often than not, female condoms are always in abundance.

“In the family setup and village context, a woman found to have worn condoms is perceived [as] unfaithful, “Chamvula is quoted as saying.

Thus, at best, female condoms remain a minefield in Malawi’s largely conservative society, tilting the SRH scales against women. Yet, the National Strategic Plan [2011-16] indicates that Malawi has a gender equality index of 0.374, an indication of the despairing inequalities between men and women.

Irony

The Mulanje and Lilongwe women may, however, be neglecting what could be regarded as a precious resource in other countries. Reports indicate that some women have been re-using the female condom, in part due to its scarcity and in part because of the high cost of such condoms.

According to a World Health Organisation (WHO) report titled ‘The Safety and Feasibility of Female Condom Reuse: Report of a WHO Consultation’, women in other parts of the world struggle to access condoms.

The report, which was published in 2002 after a meeting convened in Geneva, Switzerland, between January 28 and 29, reads in part: “Many women face difficulties in negotiating the use of male condoms.  The female condom may, therefore, be an important option to assist women in protecting themselves and their partners from both unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.

“Some women have reported using the same female condom for multiple sex acts, a behaviour said to be motivated by the high cost or limited availability of the device as well as by its perceived strength.  Such practices may expose women or their partners to pathogens during washing or subsequent reuse of the female condom, especially for populations living in areas of high STI [Sexually Transmitted Infections]/HIV prevalence.”

Thus, in response to requests for advice on the practice of reuse of the female condom, WHO and UNAIDS convened an experts’ consultation in June 2000 on the safety and feasibility of multiple uses of a single female condom.  

The consultation concluded with the recognition of the need for risk-reduction strategies for women with limited resources who may be at risk of unplanned pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections including HIV.  

“The consultation determined that currently available evidence regarding the safety of reuse was not conclusive and that re-use of a single female condom could not be recommended.  However, the panel also recognised the urgent need to provide guidance to women who may currently be reusing the female condom.  It was agreed that used female condoms should be disinfected before being washed and handled in order to reduce the risk of exposure to HIV and other pathogens,” reads part of the report.

Following the meeting, a draft protocol for safe preparation of used female condoms for additional use, based on theoretical considerations regarding disinfection, washing, drying, storage and re-lubrication, was formulated.  

Forsaken

By July 2009, only 3 out of 100 women were using female condoms in Malawi, according to the United Nations Population Fund. This sharply contradicted the percentage of men who were using condoms at the time [45 percent].

“There is need to direct more energy towards scaling up FCs distribution in rural areas,” Sandra Mapemba, UNFPA female condoms programmes coordinator for Malawi, is quoted as saying at the time [2009].

However, this state of affairs has implications which, according to the Ministry of Health in conjunction with Ipas, a reproductive rights organisation headquartered in the US, include abortion.

A study conducted by the Ministry of Health and Ipas indicates that 70,000 women had an illegal abortion in 2009 alone. It adds that 17 percent of maternal deaths in Malawi are the result of unsafe abortions.

‘Dancing for demand’

On Wednesday this week, Malawi joined the world in commemorating the 2015 Global Female Condom Day under the theme ‘Dance4Demand in Support of Female Condoms’.

This was the fourth time since 2012 that the Hunger Project Malawi in conjunction with the Reproductive Health Directorate of the Ministry of Health and other female condom stakeholders led Malawians in commemorating the day at Kasungu Community Ground.

The Hunger Project Malawi Country Director, Rowlands Kaotcha, set the tune for this year’s celebrations by calling for increased investments towards female condom education, procurement as well as supply-chain management to effectively meet the local need and demand.

“The need for female condoms in Malawi cannot be overemphasised. Malawi is still recording 48, 000 new HIV infections annually and the unmet need for contraceptives is at around 26 percent. Studies have demonstrated that bringing in female condoms to the mix of available prevention methods leads to increased rates of protected sex acts,” observed Kaotcha.

He added: “Further, studies show that, for HIV prevention, where both male and female condoms are available, total number of protected sex acts increases as compared to situations where only male condoms are available. As such, positioning female condoms within the method mix improves method choice and coverage, resulting in fewer STI [Sexually Transmitted Infections]/HIV infections and fewer unintended pregnancies.”

Otherwise, without embracing these interventions, women may continue to dance to the tune of men.

Long Road to Cartoon Nation

The print media cartoonist’s seemingly lifeless drawings have a subtle touch that lights up the flame of happiness in the mind.

No wonder that, when one bumps into a cartoon, there is a feeling of immediate freshness

They may focus on different facets of life but the cartoonist’s goal is constant: To remain relevant.

Whatever their background, the cartoonist is, in his or her own way, a giant towering over sadness and anguish through their cartoons.

That’s why James Kazembe’s Amtchona in The Weekend Nation was able to win one award after another in Malawi Broadcasting Corporation’s defunct Entertainers of the Year initiative. Through its ability to loom over sadness, cartoon lovers came to associate it with freshness. 

Haswel Kunyenje’s ‘Fingo’ and ‘Benja’ in Malawi News serve the same purpose.  

And, sometimes, especially when they depict real life and real people, the cartoonist has ‘power’ to let artificially-induced tears flood the reader’s face. A typical example is ‘Achimwene’ in The Sunday Times, which depicts struggles endured by a man who has an abusive woman for a wife.

These are but some of the purposes served by cartoons.

According to Eastern Illinois University, some of the five persuasive techniques used by cartoonists include exaggeration, labeling, symbolism, analogy, and irony.

It adds that, under exaggeration, cartoonists overdo physical characteristics of people or things in order to make a point; labeling, where objects or people are often labeled by cartoonists to make it clear exactly what they stand for; symbolism, where objects are used to stand for larger concepts or ideas; analogy, when cartoonists 'draw' a comparison between two unlike things; and irony, which entails the difference between the way things are and the way things should be.

While this may be common fodder in established institutions with cartooning courses, the case seems to be different in Malawi.

Informal path

Cartoonist Kazembe observes that the path to becoming a cartoonist in Malawi is strewn with ups and downs, as practitioners have to find their own ropes outside the formal education system.

“There is no cartooning school in Malawi. The situation in Malawi is akin to music in the sense that individuals learn from those who are in the field,” observes Kazembe.

He speaks from experience. “In my case, I learned from Brian Hara, who acquired his knowledge in college in Zimbabwe. Our friends in Zambia and Zimbabwe have colleges that offer programmes in cartooning; in Malawi, the case is different,” observes Kazembe.

The name Hara will forever be associated with cartooning in Malawi and abroad. Even death, which robbed Malawi of this greatest son in March 2008, has not erased the greatness of his cartoons. His creations include the then Malawi News Chichewa cartoon strip, Pewani, and Zabweka in The Nation.

Kazembe says, in the absence of colleges offering programmes in cartooning, the task of transferring skills shall remain on the shoulders of those who are already combing the fields.

“Of course, we have made efforts as cartoonists, including our attempts to establish an association for cartoonists, but the truth is that people like me learned from those who were in the field and the situation has not changed,” says Kazembe.

Kunyenje concurs.

“The education sector is yet to recognise the importance of the art of cartooning. That’s why cartooning remains one of the unexploited areas in Malawi,” says Kunyenje.

Rising sun

Little by little, however, the skies seem to be clearing for those harbouring ambitions to become cartoonists.

For instance, Jacaranda School for Orphans in Malawi— a brainchild of philanthropist Marie Deschamps— offers some cartooning lessons to some of the children under its armpit.

When some foreign visitors toured the place a couple of years ago, they were taken to a room that had children cartoon strips.

Standing beside the children was Jim Ali Fischer, a cartoonist renowned for his cartoon strip ‘Baruda’ in The UDF News. He is the one who was teaching the children the ropes in cartooning. The school looks after orphans and provides free primary, secondary and tertiary educations to orphans in Malawi, as well as integrated orphan care.

Another example of positive movement is the establishment of Blantyre Cartoon Club, which visits some secondary schools in Blantyre and imparts cartooning skills in students.

Kunyenje, who serves as director and works alongside cartoonists such as Peter Nyakhuwa of ‘Zayakunkhongo’ cartoon strip, says the club works with the European Cartoon centre and advances the objective promoting the art of cartooning among children in the country.
 These efforts aside, Kazembe observes that the art has potential to grow in the country despite the challenges.

He, however, says, for this level to be attained, cartooning schools should be part of the solution.

“At the moment, some secondary schools such as Chichiri in Blantyre offer art lessons, but the challenge is that qualified teachers in art are hard to come by. Therefore, we need to have qualified teachers and people who know the art well for it to flourish,” says Kazembe.

On his part, Kunyenje says cartooning remains one of the areas that are yet to be appreciated in Malawi.

“Cartooning is yet to be explored fully in Malawi. But there is hope. I have faith that things will work out because people success not because of things that are there, but because of things that will be there,” says Kunyenje.

With these developments, it would not be long before children of this age acquire the skills, master the skills of getting themselves into the swing and anarchy of the imagination to give birth to cartoons.

Counting the Eggs of Arts Festivals

There is something strange about the frequency of arts festivals in Malawi. Naturally, one question pops up: Why is it that Malawians in the arts industries seem to ‘hunt’ in packs? When one of them founds something, say arts festivals, all soon engage in full cry after it.

The cries, depending on the mood of the pack-hunters, either take the tone of Lake of Stars Festival, Bwalo la Aluso Festival, Likoma Festival, Blantyre Arts Festival, Mwezi Wawala Arts Festival (Nanzikambe) or whatever tickles the fancy of the organisers.

In rare cases, like in the case of the Lake of Stars Festival, Sunbird Sand Festival, the activity becomes a vogue. In other cases, however, like those of Bwalo la Aluso Arts Festival, the activity may die a natural death, to the detriment of both the event and artists.

Hard reality

Film Association of Malawi (Fama) president, Ezaius Mkandawire, observes that while arts and other festivals can become a useful development tool when well-planned, their meaning is diluted when they are employed with a freedom or frequency beyond reason.

Otherwise, observes Mkandawire, arts festivals may emulate the fate of lavatory fittings: They are useful when fixed in their proper place but lack a sense of necessity when multiplied beyond what is necessary for practical purposes.  

“Overall, the idea of arts festivals is good but, in our case, there are things we need to work on before we can count the benefits,” says Mkandawire.

The filmmaker says, for instance, that, in the case of Malawi, experience has shown that our “arts festivals are sometimes not conducive for watching films”. He says it is virtually impossible to watch films as musicians are blazing the skies with noise.

Says Mkandawire: “While most of the festivals are named after the arts and mostly organised to promote the arts, they are not conducive to equally-important activities such as film watching. This denies local and international filmmakers the opportunity to showcase their creativity.

“Films are meant to be watched on the big screen but, in Malawi, they are watched on the small screen and festival organisers perpetuate this trend by not offering opportunities to watch films on the big screen. This is something we should work on. Just imagine, Lilongwe has one big screen and I am not sure about Blantyre after Cine City temporality stopping doing so some time back. I understand there has been a change of hands. ”

He adds that, in the long-term, there is need to create proper space.

Mkandawire’s sentiments are shared by Musicians Union of Malawi president, Rev. Chimwemwe Mhango.

He observes that the country would have benefitted more than at the moment had it been that musicians were willing to sacrifice.

“The problem we have in Malawi is that whenever we have festivals, people do not want to sacrifice in order for them to make a name.  You find that when we organise festivals, some musicians, including our own members, will demand a lot of money. They want us to invest more in them than their exposure and this has resulted in them lacking exposure.

“Secondly, we seem to have problems with coordination. You will find that some musicians want to make heavy demands because they feel that they already made a name, and this disadvantages up-and-coming musicians who want to gain exposure. Even in gospel music circles, you will find that there are groups. Some work together; some don’t,” says Mhango.

Mhango adds that organisers of international festivals sometimes shun Malawian artists, a development that denies them the opportunity to get exposed.

He says the trend negatively affects local artists in the sense that the foreign artists do not conduct music clinics because they are denied the chance to observe the creativity as well as challenges encountered by their local counterparts.

“You only hear of local artists collaborating with foreign artists when Zambian musicians visit the country. So, organisers also need to work on this for Malawi to gain the exposure that festivals offer,” says Mhango.

Likoma Islanders Interim president, Peter Chiwaula, says, if well-nurtured, festivals have the potential to support the tourism industry in the country. He says this is why the islanders launched the festival started in August 2014.

“We have room to grow but need support from government and the corporate world to make these festivals affordable to everyone,” says Chiwaula, whose organisation runs Likoma Festival.
However, Chiwaula observes that the government, which often comes out as the biggest culprit, cannot be blamed for problems of festival organisers’ own making.

“Perhaps to say government does not support these festivals will be harsh considering the current financial position but if we are to realise the dream of earning more through tourism there is need for a push from government. The help may not (necessarily) be in monetary terms, (it can be through services such as) free adverts on public television and radio, use of Ministry of Information and Civic Education’s public address system.

“But this should not be left in the hands of the government alone. The corporate world also has a role to play.”

Glimmer of hope

However, all may not be lost for festival patrons as the Lake of Stars organisers have, as part of the event, chalked an agreement with Fama.  

“This means we have an opportunity, as filmmakers, to make the best out of the festival and showcase the best things from Malawi, thereby increasing our exposure,” says Mkandawire.

Mkandawire says the development will see filmmakers capturing short films and other interesting things that may stir interest at international level.

 Chiwaula says festivals such as Likoma Festival can be used as tools for turning Likoma into a tourism hub.

“The festival promotes tourism and connects Malawians to some rural but beautiful beaches. This will eventually see more developments on the Island and earn forex for the country,” says Chiwaula, adding:

“In the long term, we expect Likoma to develop like Caymans Islands; market the Island to encourage more people to visit Likoma for weekend getaways, holidays and corporate conferences; create job opportunities to the youth during and after the festival.

“It is also possible, using the festival as a tool, to spear head developments like expansion on existing and new lodges as well as establishment of financial institutions due to increased demand making the Island a tourist destination on the Island.”

On his part, Mhango observes that festival organisers can pick a leaf from the administration of the Chibuku music competition to create more value out of the festivals than is the case.

“If Malawian musicians are exposed at the moment, it is because of competitions such as Chibuku and not necessarily these festivals. In fact, because of these competitions, we have letters of invitation from Zimbabwe, Zambia, South Africa, among other countries, for our artists to perform.

“I believe we can achieve the same using the platform offered by festivals. We can take advantage of the foreign artists to learn and create lasting relationships,” says Mhango.

Solomonic Peacocks director, MacArthur Matukuta, whose organisation recently organised the Easter Arts Festival in Lilongwe and Blantyre, cannot agree more.

“From our experience with the Easter Arts Festival, we have learned that the economy benefits in a number of ways. Among other things, the foreign musicians use our facilities, they eat our food using the money they earn, and more people come to see them face to face, and this is the kind of trickle-down effects we want,” says Matukuta.

Matukuta says a pointer that there is light at the end of the tunnel is the agreement chalked between local comedians Izeki ndi Jakobo and their Zambian counterparts Dikiloni and Difikoti.

“It is because of festivals like the one we organised that Izeki ndi Jakobo will be able to have exchange visits with their Zambian colleagues, and this will give them exposure and promote our culture abroad. So, festivals can help our country in more ways than entertainment,” says Matukuta.

Sunbird tourism Group Sales Manager, Titania Katenga-Kaunda, whose institution has been supporting festivals such as Sunbird Sand Festival and Lake of Stars, shares Matukuta’s sentiments.

“Festivals such as Lake of Stars and Sunbird Sand Festival have shown that it is possible to create a platform for exposing and development of tourism and the arts to both local and international artist and they provide a perfect and professional environment for artists and audiences,” says Katenga-Kaunda.

She says, on its part, the tourism industry player is committed to ensuring that the country benefits from festivals by providing a conducive environment in lakeshore beaches of, say, Sunbird Nkopola,  for people to socialise, learn, develop talent and entertain audiences of diverse backgrounds.

“For example, Lake of Stars, which is aimed at promoting and uplifting cultural-tourism and arts at our beautiful Lake Malawi-recognises that tourism can contribute to our country’s economy. Among other things, foreign artists expose our destinations and spend money while here. Not surprisingly, Lake of Stars festival has become familiar to audiences across the country and beyond as we feature international artists to spice up the event and to inspire our own artists in Malawi,” says Katenga-Kaunda.

Still, as things stand, nobody has been able to form a precise estimation of festivals’ benefits.

But the hope and optimism that things can change for the better are more evident than definitive benefits. It may not be the time to throw up the sponge.

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