Service Charters: The Road to Accountability

Ruth Kapwepwe, a 27-year-old mother of two from the area of Traditional Authority Ndindi in Salima, is old enough to know that the world has always had problems: Sometimes forgotten, but always there somewhere.

She says this appreciation of problems has helped her endure challenges she encounters both in her private life and public life such as the delivery of public services.

“Even in families, marriage counsellors encourage us to endure instead of rushing to them whenever we face challenges,” says Kapwepwe, now a resident of Chiphala, T/A Kalonga. In Salima.

It, therefore, came as a surprise when officials from the Malawi Human Rights Resource Centre (MHRRC) introduced the concept of service charters, aimed at improving the provision of public services, six years ago.

The Salima Service Charter saw the Salima District Assembly (SDA) with support from MHRRC implementing a pilot phase on District Level Service Charter with the aim of improving public service delivery in 2009. The project was rolled out in T/As Mwanza, Ndindi and Bibi Kulunda.

In a bid to ensure effectiveness, the District Assembly courted journalists with the goal of empowering community members to know what standards to expect from the service providers and make demands accordingly. A media taskforce was thus put in place.

Times Group’s Business Editor, Thom Khanje, was elected to chair the taskforce, which was mandated to assist in the promotion of the formulated Service Charters as well as initiate an issue-based advocacy campaign premised on the charters.

Khanje says the task force publicised successes and challenges registered in the course of implementing the Salima Service Charter.

“We were also actively involved in the drafting of service charters between some public offices in Salima and their community beneficiaries,” says Khanje, adding:.

“A charter helps public institutions in creating effective conditions for the proper functioning of the public service and ensure that public services are available, accessible and acceptable,” says Khanje.

Return of the charters

Following the success of the Salima Service Charter, The National Initiative for Civic Education (Nice) in partnership with MHRRC have embarked on a three-year pilot service charter project in a quest “to improve public service and strengthen the inclusion of the public in service delivery by consolidating the commitment of the government to ensure that basic public services are provided in accordance with well-known, transparent, accountable and realistic standards and are accessible and acceptable to all people in Malawi”.

The project will be implemented in five districts namely Chitipa, Mchinji, Nkhotakota, Mwanza and Mulanje. The project will be implemented in phases.

Nice executive director, Ollen Mwalubunju, is optimistic that the initiative would promote accountability in the provision of public services.

“There is need to pass information to people on why service charters are important in order to enhance service delivery, promote the participation of rights holders (users) and to ensure that people are holding duty-bearers accountable,” says Mwalubunju.

Mwalubunju adds that for service charters to be meaningful in the Malawian context, service users, also known as rights holders, should own the services. He says all sectors in national development, be it in sports, the arts and business industries, can adopt the concept if the quality of services delivered is to improve.

MHRRC director, Desmond Kaunda, concurs, but adds that media practitioners are equally important in the provision of public services.

Kaunda says service charters, which he describes as documents developed by service sectors in consultation with staff and citizens setting out the standards of services that citizens can expect, help service providers gauge the expectations of rights holders while the rights holders, on their part, know what to expect from service providers.

“This empowers the rights holders and helps them hold service providers accountable. When things are not going according to plan, the rights holders can take appropriate action,” says Kaunda.

However, gender activist Emma Kaliya warns that service charters may not bring positive results if gender issues are thrown out of the window. She observes that members of some genders often bear the brunt of service neglect.

“Therefore, conducting a gender analysis helps service providers design effective, target specific equitable programmes and projects. Most often, if you visit health facilities, you rarely see men taking care of fellow men. The same applies to the sector of water and sanitation as most users of water are women. Gender balance is, therefore, very important,” says Kaliya.

The case for service charters

The Malawi government is a signatory to the African Public Service Charter, which calls for all countries in the African Union the implement and adopt Service Charters. As part of its commitment, Malawi celebrated the Africa Public Service day, which is designated in the African Public Service Charter, in 2008.

During the celebration, the then President, the late Bingu Wa Mutharika, announced that the government had plans to introduce Public Service Charters as an instrument for raising quality, effectiveness, efficiency, and responsiveness at all levels of public administration and service delivery.

Following the celebration, the Office of the President and Cabinet initiated the formulation of the Malawi Public Service Charter and the Malawi Public Service Code of Ethics and Conduct as “cornerstones of the African Public Service Charter Framework”.

Simultaneously, the government initiated a review of the Malawi Public Service Regulation.

The Malawi Public Service Charter was launched in 2009 “as a commitment to provide best possible service standards to the people of Malawi”.

The charter is a framework designed to introduce service charters in all public institutions to guide them in creating “effective conditions for the proper functioning of the public service and ensure that public services are available, accessible and acceptable”.

Its moto is to achieve a “highly motivated, productive, professional and results-oriented public service that thrives on accountability, honesty, impartiality, loyalty, integrity, justice, objectivity, selflessness, transparency and excellence”.

Khanje says the media have a crucial role to play in ensuring that players meet their obligations.

“The media can be used in diverse applications to accelerate information dissemination, improve efficiency of public services, increase the transparency and accountability of government administration, to reduce corruption, and facilitate citizen participation in local governance.

“The media can help increase the efficiency, speed, and transparency in delivery of services and, on the other hand, assist in the generation and dissemination of information and knowledge on public service delivery,” says Khanje.

All these steps are premised on the idea that, while challenges shall always be present— sometimes forgotten, but always there somewhere— rights holders expectations should, at least, be managed.

Costumes by Chance or Choice?

Every moment, ranging from the storyline to the costume, should essentially be a tiny pearl of good, coordinated taste.

Indeed, while stage-acting is supposed to be the dish the entire acting meal builds toward, every aspect in the production stage should be treated as vital.

However, this seems not to be the case in local theatre circles. As if bearing testimony to the fact that the country’s theatre industry is going through its gawky moment of adolescence, costume issues seem to be swept under the carpet, a reminder, yet again, that costume is not on the list of Malawi’s most pressing national challenges!

Consequently, supported neither by precedent nor creative improvisation, costume preferences continue to hinge on trial and error in Malawi’s theatre industry. So used is the audience to the apparent neglect of professional costume that it often does not show any hint of discontentment, save for the fact that lips of audience members seem to tremble with the ecstasy of anticipated laughter.

So long as the production crew dishes out a disciplined performance, it is as if the mind of the Malawian theatre-lover is stacked against costume designers on one hand while local production crews, on the other hand, seem not to be in the mood to lose themselves in costume issues.

Ideal world

But, in an ideal situation, is this normal?

University of Malawi (Unima) Drama lecturer, Smith Likongwe, says costume plays a crucial role in professional theatre.

“In professional theatre circles, there are special costume designers and costume makers. These are often hired part–time to fit specific productions so that they may also be available to other theatre companies. Another option in professional circles is the existence of agencies with costumes for hire.

“These agencies are often attached to theatre houses and may be owned by specific theatre companies. This is where relevant costumes are rented out for the duration of a run of a production, say, one month. There are specially designed costumes that are often required such as men’s suits, police, doctors and nurses uniforms and others,” observes Likongwe. 

Seasoned actor, Mkwachi Mhango, echoes Likongwe’s sentiments.

Mkwachi, who has starred for Nanzikambe Arts and performed in countries such as Britain, says costume is an integral part of theatre worldwide, but Malawi seems not ready to embrace the specialist costume designer’s role.

“With my experience in the United Kingdom, I can say that our friends understand that costume plays a critical role in performing arts.  Before production, they do check on costume and damaged costume is promptly replaced. You have costume specialists. So serious are they that you even have two or three sets of costume. Performers also have professional tailors who take all the measurements in the course of the production to ensure that the costume meets an individual performer’s specifications,” says Mkwachi.

Mkwachi adds: “Actually, production crews include the Technical Manager, who is responsible for issues such as sound; Costume Manager, who is in charge of costume; Stage Manager, who oversees costume arrangements on stage and works hand in hand with the costume manager, among others. The objective is to ensure a coordinated and professional production.”

However, Mkwachi observes that this is not the case in Malawi. He says local media practitioners have played a key role in perpetuating perceptions that costume is peripheral in theatrical performances.

“In Malawi, media practitioners think that theatre is kuvala zigamba [spotting rags], hence most people overlook the role of costume and I think the Zigamba [rags’ costume] mentality has played a part in this. Why should we always portray poverty in our productions? Does life in Malawi revolve around poverty?” wonders Mkwachi.

“Again, issues of costume, wardrobe, and stage management are not taken seriously in Malawi. Outside the country, everyone [including costume designers] understand their part but, in Malawi, most people don’t engage designers,” adds Mkwachi.

This is a challenge that has not escaped the attention of Solomonic Peacocks’ director, McArthur Matukuta.  

“We need to have costume designers but this is not the case at the moment. We need people with the technical know-how but there is a gap at the moment. The positive thing about specialist costume designers is that they know where to get the materials, and how to get them. Every production requires tailor-made costume materials and that’s where they become handy,” says Matukuta.

Matukuta attributes current challenges to the lack of institutions specialising in the provision of education services on costume while meeting the demand for costume materials.

Indeed, there have been suggestions that lack of specialist costume specialists [individuals and institutions] in Malawi has also negatively affected the film industry. For example, award winning filmmaker Shemu Joyah is said to have compromised on costume in his award-winning film despite hiring costume experts from Zimbabwe.

 “The problem is that there is no institution that provides education on costume. In Malawi, decisions on costume are made by the director of the production. So, we are not doing very well in this regard,” says Matukuta.

Searching for the costume designer’s place

Meanwhile, experts have expressed different views on the issue of the costume specialist’s place in local theatre.

Likongwe suggests, for instance, that, in order to survive, the costume specialists should not deposit their egg in the solitary nest of theatre.

Observes Likongwe: “The costume designer may not yet have a place in Malawian theatre unless they have other non-theatre related design-work to do. This is simply because the field is not big at the moment and the general economic situation in the country is not good enough. We should, however, be going in the direction where costume designers find a place in the theatre industry.

“In Malawi there may not be costume specialists but there are certainly people that have been hired to design and make costumes at appropriate times. This is in rare cases though. Most groups just look for what is available within their physical and economic reach.”
He adds that, on their part, institutions of higher learning such as Chancellor College— a constituent college of Unima—incorporate aspects of costume.
 “In drama programmes, we deal with costume design in the Directing courses. [But] There is no stand-alone course on costume design. We would have to work with colleagues from the Fine Art section of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts or work with the Department of Human Ecology. 
“For example, I recently had one of my classes design masks that have been used in two of our most recent productions namely Tax Abortion and M’matsakamula. These had to be done with the assistance of colleagues in the Fine Art Section. I teach the Directing Course, among others, but had to ask Eva Chikabadwa from the Fine Art Section to deal with the practical aspect of mask-making in my course,” says Likongwe, adding:

“I am simply saying that the theatre industry is big and it needs other artisans like sculptors, painters, make-up artists, carpenters, tailors, electricians and others. So, yes, we cover the issue of costume design at Chancellor College. It is not outside the realm of theatre although it may be outside the scope of the actor.”

On his part, Mkwachi advises theatre groups to emulate the example of Nanzikambe Arts, which could be said to be the leading theatre group when it comes to spotting costume.

“Nanzikambe Arts might have benefitted from staging adaptations because costume issues are taken seriously there. At Nanzikambe, without which some of us would not have cultivated the knowledge we have, there are shelves of costumes while in other groups actors are just told their part and told to find the appropriate costume.

“Nanzikambe even has theatre money. This is not real money but plastic money which looks like the real Kwacha. We have special chemicals that are used on the stage when, in Malawi, actors use chalk, which is very dangerous. Chalk is bad”.

Mkwachi says this means prioritising costume is not a far-fetched dream for Malawi.

Matukuta cannot agree less.

“The industry needs costume specialists. Otherwise, our productions will remain compromised, costume-wise, because it’s very difficult [for laypersons] to decide on issues of costume. The costume institution should be a stand-alone organisation and should not be attached to any group. Such institutions are always stand-alone entities, after all,” says Matukuta.

Success will, however, largely depend on how theatre groups carry themselves. Sometimes, it could be argued, there is a lack of sympathy for the ‘troubled’ theatre groups due to the actors’ pretention that everything is okay in their usual unduly boisterous fashion.

Melusi Khumalo’s Love-Hate Romance with Music

Once the rosy fingers of music crept through Zimbabwean musician Melusi Khumalo’s mind in 1987, turning back has not been an option.

However, Khumalo soon realised that his mind had escaped into a world where awkwardness in terms of which genre to choose often forced artists to abandon their preferred type of music for the most popular genre in a bid to sail with the public winds.

So, pumped up with the frustration of failure to record his songs, the gangly musician was, at some point, forced to call it quits—in much the same way as Lucius Banda has revealed that he contemplated quitting music due to piracy.

These are some of the issues the renowned international artist shared with Weekender in an exclusive interview after his tour of Malawi. The musician, who travelled all the way from Botswana to perform in the country last week, entertained people during a night dubbed ‘A Night of Classical Afro Jazz, Rock and Reggae’.

Khumalo’s journey
Like most Malawians, Khumalo traces his music career to his involvement with the church.
“My music was nurtured through the Baptist Church and, once I ventured into professional music in 1987, I became so passionate about it that I have never looked back,” says Khumalo.
However, his most cherished moment came in 1987 when he composed the single ‘Khumbula’.
“I was happy because I played alongside my four sisters. It was amazing in the 1980s, with the lack of infrastructure, to make a song and sing it. I, therefore, decided to record it,” he says.
But interest does not always breed success, as Khumalo would learn after attempting to record an album in the early 1980s.
Khumalo points out that his initial efforts were frustrated by the lack of infrastructure, as the music scene was characterised by lack of recording studios. The development was not different from Malawi in the sense that, in Malawi, this was the era when musicians such as Allan Namoko, Michael Yekha, among others, had to rely on the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation to record their songs.
 “I started recording with a studio in Zimbabwe but I was let down by infrastructure. People may not believe this but I quit music at one point and concentrated on church activities until 2011,” confesses Khumalo.

Early hurdles
But lack of infrastructure was not the only challenge. He was also confronted with the dilemma of either sticking to the genre he had always admired or adopting ‘Sungura’,   a genre that rose to prominence during the era of veteran Zimbabwean musicians such as Alex Macheso and Leonard Dembo.
“Sungura was the most famous genre at the time and Leonard Dembo was the hit boy of the moment. The guy [Macheso] was at his peak and music lovers advised me to ‘Make it like that guy’ and this was a source of frustration for me. I did not want to follow in the footsteps of the hit boys; I wanted to create a niche for myself,” says Khumalo.
He had to seek inspiration in influential foreign musicians and South African musician, Jabu Khanyili, proved to be that source. Khumalo says he drew lessons from Khanyili and his [Khanyili’s] music in-roads inspired him.

Rejuvenation
“After taking a break from music in the 1980s, in part because I was frustrated that I could not record my songs whenever I wanted to, I received revelation that ‘God has got something to cultivate through you’ and that’s when I got into active music again.
“I have got stacks of music; I am just pulling the tracks I like and recording them. I still love music and I have taught my two boys how to play music. My son ‘Methembe’ is specifically enthusiastic. I often play acoustic music,” says Khumalo.
Some of his remarkable songs, both in Zimbabwe and on the international scene, include the Shona hit ‘Mambo Jesu’ and ‘Musandire’—which discourages people from showing off and implores them to praise God for what they have.
“What I am actually saying is that we do not have to despise people like street kids, albinos. Those people did not choose to be in that situation and some of them can’t correct the situation. They have got rights, too. The song became so popular that I did it in three languages: Bemba, Ndebere and Bemba,” he says.
His other international hits are ‘Uthando’—which he performed in Malawi last Friday— and ‘Kwazekwakuhle’, a song of hope as it encourages the down-trodden to keep their heads high.

Challenges in Africa
However, Khumalo observes that the Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) musician faces a tall order in terms of rising above the international music waters due to a number of factors.
“The first challenge has to do with infrastructure. We are still starved of infrastructure. We will be squeezed because we have no tools and infrastructure. The reason the West will always beat us is that they have the equipment and infrastructure,” says Khumalo.
He adds: “Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe: We are in the same boat. South Africa is more advanced. So, we need infrastructure and facilities and brains. We need brains to nurture the talent and the infrastructure to support it.”

Gospel versus secular musician
The divide between a secular and Gospel musicians is so pronounced in Malawi that the two artistes live in two different worlds.
For Khumalo, however, there should, really, be no such divisions.
“My music cuts across both [worlds]. In the end, all lyrics have to do with Jesus Christ. My philosophy is, ‘Do well, and do it with all your heart’,” he says, and adds:
“There is need to strike a balance between Christian life and everyday life. The first thing should be putting Christian values first. That’s why I don’t sleep around [with other women]. I have been married to Nkosinomsa Khumalo since December 7, 1994 and I am dedicated to her. I believe in morals.”

Clearing hurdles
Khumalo says the African artist has a chance to make it big internationally, but that success would hinge on clearing the playground.
He says one of the challenges facing the development of music is piracy, a development he says has perpetuated the trend where music is widely regarded as a part-time career in Southern Africa.
Just recently, Balaka-based veteran musician, Lucius Banda, revealed that he was contemplating quitting music because of piracy. His latest album, ‘Thank You’, released three weeks ago, found itself on the music shelves without the artist’s knowledge and consent. They call it piracy!
“It’s sad that musicians such as Lucius Banda are contemplating quitting music due to piracy. The Malawi Government Minister of Arts should do something about it. Piracy is one of the things that, like a Cancer, is eating through the fabric of creativity,” observes Khumalo.
The other task, he suggests, should be the erection of infrastructure and establishment of music schools in a bid to empower African children who fancy a career in music and prepare them for the task of going international with their music.
“We have to break these boundaries because we have a message to share with the world. We just need equipment and accessories to teach music. We need to be intentional about developing music because there is need to have people who are into full-time music,” he says.
As Africa braces for that break-through, however, Khumalo can still look back and afford a smile. After all, it has not been easy, but he has made it this far.
“When I look back at my life, I feel my tears running down my cheeks,” he can afford to say when other musicians—weighed down by the yoke of piracy and an unappreciative international market—can only say, ‘say that once again!’

The Art of Circles: 51 Years of Lost Motivation

Maybe there was a true motivational factor. Maybe the true motivational factor was lost in time because, maybe, July 6, 1964 is such a long time back that nobody remembers what the initial focus was.

But, as Malawians prepare to commemorate 51 years of independence from Britain, the arts industries will likely look back with mixed emotions, appreciating the steps taken to uplift the lives of actors in the industry while ruing lost opportunities.

The unfair part about life is that, while there may be many different paths to success, colouring the feat in a different way, there are not many ways of colouring failure except using dark colours.

One of the hallmarks of the country’s failure to tap from the hidden treasure that is culture has been the failure to develop a Cultural Policy, at least until the coveted blueprint was adopted by the Cabinet. However, there has been negligible progress since Culture Minister Kondwani Nankhumwa became the bearer of the good news.

The government’s half-century wait to adopt the Cultural Policy could be baffling to some international scholars who cannot visualise life outside the cultural parameters that reflect a nation’s collective aspirations.

For example, in a paper titled ‘The Context for Cultural Policy – Old World and New World’, Maria Naimark, Associate Professor at Interstudio State Institute for the Professional Development in Culture in Russia, and Dennis Rich, chairman of the Arts, Entertainment and Media Management Department at Columbia College in the United States, observe that the wheel of national development cannot roll smoothly without culture.

Reads part of their paper: “A nation’s culture mirrors its deepest roots, current state and vision of future. The cultural sphere develops along with national development in general, but there are the fundamentals that never change completely and influence every-day cultural life. Culture is often the result and always the cause for the cultural policy.

“There is a kind of circle: national background— national cultural policy—artistic product [institutions, individuals with their creations] cultural life of the country [which becomes the part of the context and finally – background] - again cultural policy - And any changes, or improvements can only shape, adjust, optimize the long-existing tradition.”

Naimark and Rich also provide a justification for the state’s subvention to arts organisations.

“Put another way, the collective heritage of a nation deserves collective, that is, public or government support. It can also be argued that government funding relieves or at least minimises the pressure on arts institutions to fund-raise. And, unburdened by this distraction, arts agencies and artists are free to pursue artistic endeavor.

“Another very significant argument favouring public funding for the arts is that such funding frees the artist from the pressures of the market place. This way it makes a kind of circle: national background – national cultural policy – artistic product (institutions, individuals with their creations—cultural life of the country— again cultural policy.”
For Malawians, however, the only words they have heard from Culture and Tourism Minister, Kondwani Nankhumwa, are that “This (the adoption of the Cultural Policy) marks the beginning of the creation of a win-win situation.”

Survival mechanisms

But, in the absence of government subvention due to lack of a cultural policy, arts associations have largely relied on external technical and financial support to keep the boat floating.

For example, the Film Association of Malawi (Fama) says it has created partnerships with international institutions to promote industry interests.

“We have partnered with international organisations that support and promote international exposure,” says Fama president, Ezaius Mkandawire, citing the Goethe Institute and Arterial Network Africa Movie Academy.

However, Mkandawire observes that these efforts are not enough, and the path to meeting international standards remains largely unpaved. He says current efforts are “just a way to create a conducive environment for our film makers to get used to the standards that are required 
internationally.” 

But, again, while the coming together of film makers is a sign of a country coming of age, Fama came into being only in the early 2000s, some 35 years after independence from Britain.

The same can be said of Musicians Union of Malawi (Mum). 51 years after independence, Mum is yet to forge win-win partnerships with international players in the music production and distribution chain, as Mum president, Reverend Chimwemwe Mhango, acknowledges.

  “At the moment, we are working with international music distributors to increase the exposure of our musicians to the international audiences,” says Mhango.

National ‘orphan’ 

While all the players in the arts industry are facing crippling challenges, one voice that rises loudest is that of writers who say that, half a century after the attainment of independence, the local writer remains at the mercy of book publishers’ devices.

Malawi Writers Union (Mawu) president, Mike Sambalikagwa Mvona, suggests that book publishers have created divisions among writers by preferring some writers over others.

“The publishers have sidelined the general fiction and non-fiction writer in preference for textbook writers, and this has reduced chances of getting one’s work published,” says Mvona.

This, he says, means that while other writers are making hay while the sun is shining, others do not know when it will be ripe to buy their way back to the bank.

On a positive note, though, the international community seems to have realised that Malawi can make a positive contribution on the global stage after Mvona’s election as Vice Chairperson for the International Authors Forum (IAF), a global organisation which provides a platform where authors’ organisations share information and take action on issues affecting them worldwide.

It is, in a way, like these have not been 51 years of walking under the shadow of anxiety.

Ideal world

This notwithstanding, there are others in the arts industry who feel that, in an ideal world, Malawi was supposed to have a one-stop arts centre.
For example, author, Malawi Pen and Book Publishers Association of Malawi president, Alfred Msadala, says some countries in the world have managed to develop one-stop arts centres as one way of appreciating the positive contribution of the arts in development.
“At my house, I have a picture of one of these centres, where artists have everything in one building. I took the picture when I visited one of the countries and I think this is the right way to go,” says Msadala.
Instead of working on this dream, however, the operational environment continues to be oppressive to, for example, publishers.
“The cost of publishing books is higher in Malawi than outside because paper and machines used are taxable,” says Msadala.
This, half a century after independence!

Biased recognition
As the country hopes for better days ahead, however, there are suggestions that creative minds that have contributed towards efforts to rid the country of vices such as colonialism and one-party oppression should be honoured.
For example, Poetry Association of Malawi (Pam) president, Felix Njonjonjo Katsoka, observes that poets have not been accorded the respect they deserve.

“For example, one day the country will realise that, through poetry, Jack Mapange actively participated in the struggle against oppression and fight for democracy,” says Katsoka.

And, half a century, later, poets are yet to reap the fruits of their labour

“Poets are not receiving loyalties from any media house. Currently, Cosoma is not collecting loyalties on behalf of poets while musicians are enjoying [the same]. [We also have a] small number of female poets. Potential female poets do not want to expose their talent,” laments Katsoka.

This notwithstanding, the poet has not been completely forgotten in post-independence Malawi.

“Malawian poetry has been part of the syllabi in all literature courses at all levels of education; for instance, Akoma Akagonera and Ndidzakutengera Kunyanja Ligineti in secondary schools,” he says.

Visual contribution

The visual arts industry has been one of the features of post-independence Malawi, painting the aspirations of individuals and the nation.

However, Visual Arts Association National Executive Committee Secretary, Gilbert Mpakule, recently told Weekender that, it has not been easy for the industry, too. He says the industry suffers from the malaise of lack of appreciation.

“Take, for instance, our secondary school curriculum. It took the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology ages to come up with a curriculum that incorporated Creative Art. Now we have Creative Art at secondary school level but there is lack of seriousness. Just imagine, we have a lot of secondary schools in Blantyre but only students at Chichiri Secondary School have expressed interest in the subject,” he observes.

Grand plans

Director for the Department of Culture in the Ministry of Information, Tourism, Culture, Dr. Elizabeth Gomani Chindevu, says the government appreciates the role of the arts industry in the country, hence the establishment of the Department of Culture as well as that of Arts and Crafts.

She says the department has great plans.

“Actually, we have plans to construct cultural infrastructure across the country. The challenge has always been finances,” says Chindebvu.

“Following the Adoption of the Cultural Policy, it will become easier for us to source funds because development partners want something that is typed in black and white, and this is the purpose that the Cultural Policy will serve,” adds Chindebvu.

Common hope

When all is said and done, all the arts associations seem to agree that the adoption of the new Cultural Policy heralds new hope for Malawi.

Pam recites stanzas of hope. And, so, do musicians. The film industry joins the song.

Pinning their hopes on a piece of paper. 51 years later!

HIV and AIDS: Malawi averts 200, 000 HIV Deaths

Malawi has in the past 10 years averted 47, 000 HIV infections, while the introduction of antiretroviral (ART) therapy has saved a further 200, 000 people from the jaws of death, a latest National Aids Commission report indicates.

The report takes stock of progress made since the introduction of free ART in 2004.

The report, titled ‘National HIV and Aids Estimates, has been released by Nac in collaboration with the Department of HIV and Aids in the Ministry of Health and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/Aids.

It shows that the country has reduced the rate of new HIV infections, HIV-related deaths while indicating that the number of people enrolled on the ART programme has increased.

“The number of new HIV infections has continued to decrease from 89, 000 in 2004, when the Government of Malawi introduced free antiretroviral therapy, to 42, 000 in 2014. More than half of all new HIV infections occurred in women aged 15 years and above in 2014,” the report reads in part.

It further indicates that the size of the HIV population in the country has been stable in the period under review, a development attributed to the decline in new infections and Aids death rates.

“The introduction of free ART has averted over 200, 000 deaths, including about 37, 000 in 2014 alone,” adds the report.

However, the report warns that the figures are modeled estimates as opposed to directly measured numbers.

Wake Up Malawi: Time to Change Nnational Mentality

There is something peculiar about the way Malawians conduct themselves. I am talking of how things go by contraries with politics and attitude towards life.

It seems that we take so many things for granted. Take, for instance, the fact that, despite the Kamuzu Barrage at Liwonde in Machinga being one of the country’s monumental structures—and despite reports that the barrage could be past its life span—nobody knows whether it is past its life span because there are no such records!

Then, there is the question of members of Parliament crossing the floor in Parliament. Ever since Malawians got acquainted with the term ‘crossing the flour’, they have embraced the term with the faith of a baby in its mother’s milk. It is as if there is a law called crossing the flour in this country.

But any lawyer worth their salt will tell you that nowhere does the Republican Constitution have a provision on ‘crossing the floor’. Any lawyer worth their salt will tell you that the ‘animal’ called ‘crossing the flour’ falls under what they term ‘Marginal Law’. In other words, ‘Marginal Laws’  are words scribbled on the margins of the Constitution to act as guidelines, but these words, by themselves, are not law.

I am giving these examples just to illustrate that we take so many things for granted in this country. This, in part, can be blamed on our disdain for research and documentation.

How many people, for example, have published books covering their areas of expertise in this country? Why is it that, often, it is foreign firms that conduct national audits in this country? To cut a long story short, these things happen because we take ourselves for granted. And it is because we take ourselves for granted that we have come to take other equally-important things for granted. That is why we believe things at face value.

Consequently, prostituting politicians will always tell us that they hop from one political grouping to another in order to foster development in their areas, and we shall always believe them.  The opposition will always claim to represent our wishes when it comes to rebuffing loan authorisation bills but keep mum when they connive with ruling parties to silently hike their take-home packages.

Indeed, our presidents will always tell us that they have developed the country beyond recognition and we will always believe them. 

No wonder, the political independence that the nationalists laboured over for years, and launched full of the high dosage of excitement, has foundered on the way to the promised land, although the wreck called Malawi continues to float, thanks to the foreign aid that mocks our claims of independence.

The truth is that the talk of independence was a hastily written story created with no thought beyond that of being at par with African states that attained independence around the same time with us. This was the sweet and sacred side of the change but, like all human stories, it had its droll and thorny side.

This year, 51 years after independence, the anxieties of reality have succeeded the aura of excitement. In fact, the plunder of public resources dubbed Cashgate has just made the situation worse. Manifestations of greed are all over the place, despite warnings against the risks of greed, especially that perpetuated by leaders.

Italian poet Dante Alighieri [1265 – 1321], for example, observed that “…greed ignores man himself and seeks other things, but charity ignores all other things and seeks God and man, and consequently man’s good”.

“But”, to quote Jean Jacques Rousseau [1712 – 1778], author of books such as ‘Discourse on the Origin of Inequality (1755) and ‘The Social Contract’ (1762), “in truth, what else was to be expected? Every community without laws and without rulers, every union formed and maintained by nothing better than chance, must inevitably fall into quarrels and dissensions at the fist change that comes about.”

Maybe we can blame this state of affairs on the governance systems adopted by our leaders. Emmanuel Kant [1724 – 1804], in the book ‘Perpetual Peace’ [written in 1795 when he was 71 years old] observes that there are some three notable maxims that leaders who are bound to fall follow, namely: Fac et excusa (Fist do and then excuse); Si fecisti nega (Deny whatever you have committed); Divide et impera (divide and govern).

According to Kant, leaders who adopt the Fac et Excusa concept “seize every favourable opportunity of usurping a right over their own state, or a neighbouring state. After the action, its justification may be made with greater ease and elegance…”

The Si fecisti nega type, however, deny whatever they have committed. “For instance, if you have reduced your people to despair, and thus to rebellion, do not confess it was through your fault. Place all (blame) to the account of the stubbornness of your subjects. If you have taken possession of a neighbouring state, maintain that the fault lies in the nature of man, who, if he is not anticipating, will certainly seize upon the fortunes of another.”

But it is the Divide et impera type   that is funny. “If there exists among a people certain privileged chiefs who have conferred upon you sovereign power (primus inter pares), set them at variance with each other, embroil them with the people. Favour the latter and promise them more liberty, and all will soon depend on thy will. Or if your views extend to foreign states, excite discord among them; and, under pretense of always assisting the weaker, you will soon subject them all, one after the other.”

The question is: What leaders have we imposed on ourselves? Maybe it is high time we reinvented the wheel and set the terms on what type of ruling and opposition leaders we want. It is not too late to start all over again after 51 years. 

The Arts: Sustaining the beat of international glory

Granted, it is not every year that members of national arts associations can win international awards.

However, when the time between one award and the next is prolonged, the situation becomes so embarrassing that memories of past glory take the shape of a memento of dead flowers presented on a new occasion.

This is the situation the country faces after registering positive results, in terms of getting international awards, in the arts. While some arts associations continue to produce winners, others are yet to make the big break.

Memento hours

One of the industries that have put the country on the map is that of music. For example, Malawians still remember how Wambali Mkandawire’s debut international album, ‘Zani Muwone’, put Malawi on the international map between 2002 and 2003.

The album, an eclectic mix of Malawian, Congolese and West African rhythms, saw Wambali being nominated for the Kora award in 2002.

The year after, he won the Music Award for the Best African Artiste.

However, his exploits were linked to his international exposure to music, other than Malawi’s musical environment. By Implication, this means Wambali might not have attained his status had he been the exclusive creation of Malawi’s artistic environment.
According to www.instinctafricaine.com, “Wambali Mkandawire was first introduced to Malawian traditional music and Congolese music by his grandparents who were working in Belgium Congo, where he was born. When he was 8 years old, his grandparents returned to what was then Nyasaland.”
This notwithstanding, Wambali nurtured his talent in Malawi, starting with his stint with “Pentagon Band in the late 1970s. The band later created a niche by fusing rock with traditional music. This was before he joined New Song’, Youth for Christ band, as one of the singers.
In 1988, Wambali recorded his first solo album with Krakatoa Music in Cape Town, South Africa. During the same time, he recorded and toured with ‘Friends First’, a South African music group.
 On release of ‘Zani Muwone’ in 2002, Wambali was invited to perform at the North Sea Jazz Festival held in Cape Town in 2002.
In August 2002, Wambali was awarded the World Intellectual Property Organisation Award for Creativity, marking the first time this award has ever been made to an African artiste. This is the year he was also nominated for a 2002 Kora Award in the category ‘Best Artiste from Southern Africa’.
Not that Wambali was the first to get international recognition. He is one of the few that include Dr Daniel Kachamba, who was recognised in Germany, where he went as a Mister but came back as a Doctor due to his prowess in music. That’s what music can do; turn locals into international celebrities.
The film industry has also had its time in the sun, and could be said to be the industry-of-the-moment when it comes to winning international awards.
For example, as recently as 2013, a young female director, Chimwemwe Mkwezalamba, won Best Emerging Director award for her film, ‘The Designer’, at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival held in California, USA.
In addition, ‘Umunthu’, a film by Mwizalero Nyirenda, won the Sembene Ousmane Award in Zanzibar (Tanzania);
That is not all, however, as film makers such as Shemu Joyah, and actors such as Joyce Chavula have kept Malawi’s flag flying on the international stage.

As for poetry, Stanley Onjezani Kenani was nominated for the 2012 Caine Prize.

While poetry has not been as prolific as film making, hope was rekindled on September 29, 2011, when the then U.S. Embassy acting Public Affairs Officer, Stephanie Reed, announced winners of the nation-wide poetry contest held for Malawian youth during August and September this year.
The overall winner was Madalitso Daniel Maluwa with his poem 'Nameless Rendition', with   Tadala Tembo, who entered the contest with 'Evergreen,' emerging as the first runner up while Towera Kabogodo Gondwe, who authored 'A Day is Coming', was the second runner up.
The winners were determined by a panel of three judges comprising published writer, local and international award winner Willie Zingani, published poet Stanley Onjezani Kenani and English Research Fellow Heidi Howland.

While Malawians thought that the US$700, US$500 and US$200 given to the overall winner, first runner up and second runner up, respectively, would motivate them into winning US dollars on the international scene, the big break is yet to be made.

The winning formula

Film Association of Malawi (Fama) president, Ezaius Mkandawire, says, while it is not easy to create a winning brand, it is possible to sustain the winning spirit on the international stage, so long as there is team work.

“[That is why) we have recognised all those that have made it big. We have invited some to pick their brains through round table discussions. We have, for example, engaged Charles Shemu Joyah in drafting a Development Strategy. We are surely going to ask those that have flown our flag high to help grow and nurture the film industry with us,” says Mkandawire.

Mkandawire adds that, to an extent, Fama has guided film makers to win international awards.

“We have, for example, partnered with international organisations that support and promote international exposure. These organisations include the Goethe Institute, Arterial Network Africa Movie Academy. We constantly are in touch with our members to appraise them on international developments like festivals.”

He adds that Fama has a working understanding with Multi Choice involving the collection of films from Malawi for exposure to international audiences.

“Currently, we are establishing a film festival that will be held in October. We have identified a partner. We have done initial consultations with the government [and] this is just a way to create a conducive environment for our film makers to get used to the standards that are required
internationally,” says Mkandawire.
He says this is in line with the association’s founding philosophy. The idea to establish Fama was molted in the early 2000s when a group of people decided to establish an association with a specific purpose of lobbying the then sole television station, Television Malawi [now Malawi Broadcasting Corporation Television], to provide cheaper rate for broadcasting material.

However, the idea did not work and it took the emergence of what was then the Malawi International Film Festival to realise the dream again.

Musicians Union of Malawi president, Reverend Chimwemwe Mhango, says the union is aware that the international music trophies’ cabinet is almost empty and is working on improving the situation.

“At the moment, we are working with international music distributors to increase the exposure of our musicians to the international audiences. We also have plans to talk to record labels because these institutions are well-connected to expose local talent. If you take the example of Wambali, you will realise that his award-winning album was recorded in South Africa and were handled by a record label,” says Mhango.

Wambali’s award-winning ‘Zani Muwone’ was produced by JB Arthur.

Mhango says, as part of increasing international exposure, the union sent representatives to the recent gathering of musicians in South Africa.

He says only through working with record labels and forging international partnerships can the international window be opened for international trophies.

Poetry Association of Malawi president, Felix Njonjonjo Katsoka, says poets can bring glory home, but are not given a chance to perform alongside foreign artists when they visit the country. He says this affects poets’ exposure while local musicians are accorded the opportunity to perform alongside foreign artists.

Charity, he suggests, should begin at home.

And the poets will, in turn, entice international glory home!

Kulengeza Uthenga Wachisoni

14 August, 2015

Kulengeza Uthenga Wachisoni

A ku likulu la Mpingo Wakatolika akulengeza za imfa ya Bambo Denis Kamalo a Zomba Dayosizi. Bambo Kamalo amwalira ku chipatala cha Mission cha Pirimiti m’boma lomwelo la Zomba dzulo pa 13 August ali ndi zaka 74.

Mwambo wa Maliro ukachitikira ku Zomba Cathedral Lolemba pa 17 August, 2015 kuyambira 10:00 mmawa.

Bambo Kamalo omwe anabadwa pa 14 September, 1941, amachokera m’mudzi wa Kamaru ku Mlombozi Parish m’Boma la Zomba. Atatsiriza maphunziro awo a Philosophy and Theology adadzozedwa unsembe pa 18 April m’chaka cha 1971.

Moyo wa Unsembe:

Ngati wansembe, Bambo Kamalo atumikira ku Parishi ndi malo awa: Liwonde, Nankhunda, Lisanjala, Mayaka, Chipini, Domasi ndiponso Matiya. Adakhalapo Director wa Likulezi Catechetical Centre komanso St. Joseph Carpentry.

Bambowa adatumikiranso ngati Khansala wa Episkopi, Chaplain wa Achinyamata komanso Chaplain woyang’anira ndende ndi zipatala.

Dongosolo la mwambo wa maliro:
14 – 16 August, 2015: Thupi la malemuwa likhala likusungidwa kunyumba ya chisoni ya Chipatala chachikulu cha Zomba. Mapemphero akhala akuchitika opempherera mzimu wawo.

16 August, 2015:  4:00 madzulo:  Mapemphero ndi kutenga thupi la malemuwa kunyumba yachisoni.

  4:30 madzulo:  Mwambo wa Misa ku Zomba Cathedral.

  6:00 madzulo:  Mwambo wokhudza maliro.

17 August, 2015: 10:00 mmawa: Nsembe ya Misa ku Zomba Cathedral.

Mzimu wa Bambo Kamalo uuse ndi mtendere

Rev. Fr. Henry Saindi

SECRETARY GENERAL

INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE DEATH OF DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS AT THE ANTI CORRUPTION BUREAU (ACB) LATE ISSA NJAUJU

Republic of Malawi

PRESS STATEMENT

For Immediate Release

July 7, 2015

Ministry of Information, Tourism and Culture

Lilongwe

Malawi

INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE DEATH OF DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS AT THE ANTI CORRUPTION BUREAU (ACB) LATE ISSA NJAUJU

Government expresses heartfelt concern and condemns the brutal and cowardly murder of Mr Issa Njauju who at the time of his untimely death was Director of the Corporate Affairs responsible for general administration, finance and human resource at the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB).

The Malawi Police Service has opened investigations into this tragic death. Government, and all law abiding citizens, will therefore wait for the findings of these professional investigations to take an informed stand on the matter.

To this effect, the general public is being asked to refrain from making wild speculations which are deeply hurting the bereaved family and colleagues at the ACB who have lost a dear friend, husband and father. Such a painful and tragic death must not be a treated as a source of propaganda by anyone.

The Malawi Police Service is working around the clock to find the real truth of the matter. Therefore, the public is hereby being assured that perpetrators of this heinous act will be found and be brought to book. The criminals can run, but not hide.

Meanwhile, Government is appealing to the general public to assist the Police with relevant information that may lead to the apprehension of the criminals.

KONDWANI NANKHUMWA MP

MINISTER OF INFORMATION, TOURISM AND CULTURE

GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON

Page of 3

For Raphael Tenthani, Mentor

It's sad that the great Raphael Tenthani is gone.
The last time I met him was yesterday.
He came to the office, in the company of his jubilant children
And sent me to buy pork at Ginnery Corner
As he always did
And, then, we devoured the meat
Not knowing it was the Last Lunch


Ralph Tenthani's legacy is like a house:
Painted, repainted, and painted again through his writings;
It is too strong, shiny perhaps, to shrink under the heavy weight of death.

The constitution of Ralph Tenthani's brain verged on the extra-ordinary.
Morbid cases of political myopia he laid bare.
When political praise-singing reigned supreme, he had a way of
throwing sense into gear.
Often drawing on his extraordinary store of memories, his lines of
thought were not humanly typical.
It's his 'religious' love for telling the truth- nothing but the
painful truth- that has produced innumerable devotees.
His impartial judgement, strength of character, unshakability of mind
and soul, set him apart. It, kind of, gave him a new range of power;
the sort of power only the pen offers.
As American philosopher, William James (1842 - 1910), rightly
observed, "The fermentative influence of geniuses must be admitted as,
at any rate, one factor in the changes that constitute social
evolution".
Ralph Tenthani was a social, political,and-what-have-you evolutionist.
He belonged to the highest order of minds.
Now, as Ephraim Nyondo said when Atate Edward Chitsulo followed The
Way of All the Earth that month-not-very-far-away-from-

this, he
belongs to the ages now.
As our thoughts fizzle and bob about all the great experiences we have
had with Ralph.
In our sadness, let us take time to reel Ralph's life into one great
memory of inspiration.
As we move on.

Of course,
Sadness flows all over the place
One layer of sadness on top of another
Over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over


When his remains finally go under
Where soil particle upon soil particle shuts down geniuses like Ralph
Our memories of him will flood the land above
Inspiring his cash crop: Journalists!

FULFILLING OUR PROMISES

Page 1

FULFILLING OUR PROMISES

STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS

by

HIS EXCELLENCY

PROF. ARTHUR PETER MUTHARIKA

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF MALAWI

on the occasion of

THE STATE OPENING OF THE 4TH MEETING IN THE

45TH

SESSION OF PARLIAMENT AND THE

2015/2016 BUDGET MEETING

LILONGWE

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

YOUR

EXCELLENCY

MADAME

GERTRUDE

MUTHARIKA, FIRST LADY OF THE REPUBLIC OF

MALAWI;



RIGHT HONOURABLE SAULOS CLAUS CHILIMA, VICE

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF MALAWI;



RIGHT HONOURABLE RICHARD MSOWOYA, M.P.,

SPEAKER OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY;



YOUR LORDSHIP HONOURABLE ANDREW NYIRENDA,

SC, CHIEF JUSTICE;



HONOURABLE DEPUTY SPEAKERS;



HONOURABLE LEADER OF THE HOUSE;



HONOURABLE CABINET MINISTERS AND DEPUTY

MINISTERS;



HONOURABLE JUSTICES OF APPEAL AND JUDGES OF

THE HIGH COURT;



HONOURABLE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION;



LEADERS OF POLITICAL PARTIES REPRESENTED IN

PARLIAMENT;



HONOURABLE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT;



YOUR

EXCELLENCY

MADAM

THANDIWE

DUMBUTCHENA, DEAN OF THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS

AND HEADS OF DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS;



MR. GEORGE MKONDIWA, CHIEF SECRETARY TO

THE GOVERNMENT;



DISTINGUISHED INVITED GUESTS;



LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.

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INTRODUCTION

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am delighted to be here this morning to

deliver the State of the Nation Address to this august House

and to open the 2015/2016 Budget Meeting.

Allow me, Mr. Speaker, Sir, to begin my address by exalting the

Almighty God for his continued grace that has seen us through

the first year of my term of office as President of the Republic

of Malawi. I also express my sincere gratitude to all Malawians

for giving me the opportunity to serve them as President and

this honourable House for its support during the year.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in my first State of the Nation Address in

June last year, I outlined a comprehensive reform agenda and

plans to transform this nation. I also specifically stated that

prosperity, justice and security would be pillars of my

Administration. Today, I am here, Mr. Speaker, Sir, to report

on the progress we have made thus far and where we stand as

a nation. I will talk about the strong foundation that we are

laying to propel our nation forward. I am particularly delighted

because we are already delivering on our promises before the

first anniversary of my Administration.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as stated in the 2014 DPP Manifesto and

indicated in my 2014 State of the Nation Address, we are at a

very pivotal moment of our history as a nation. The first fifty

years of independence were a mixed bag. While we have so far

registered a number of successes, we have also not done well

in some areas.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am reiterating today that we, as a nation,

have to always learn from experience and past mistakes. The

opportunity to correct mistakes lies with us. Mr. Speaker, Sir,

we all have to be mindful of the fact that history will harshly

judge us if we do not seize the opportunities that are currently

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available for us to redefine and reposition our destiny as a

nation. Our children will never forgive us if we fail to make the

right decisions for a better future.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, let me, therefore, reaffirm my commitment to

public sector reforms as one of the important pillars for

sustainable socio-economic transformation. This entails

abandoning archaic systems and practices that, though

familiar, are no longer serving us efficiently. I repeat, Mr.

Speaker, Sir, that our current situation necessitates

fundamental changes in the way we do things as we look into

the future with renewed hope, confidence and enthusiasm. I

am, however, aware that old habits die hard and that change

can be a painful or stressful experience. I am thus calling upon

all Malawians, especially you, Honourable Members of

Parliament to render your support to the reform initiatives.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, this is why I have, in the past few months,

launched various public sector reforms under the Public

Service Reform Agenda. I have also launched several

programmes and initiatives aimed at enhancing knowledge and

skills transfer and empowering Malawians in various aspects of

life. In addition, I recently launched the Public Finance

Management Reforms Programme with a view to strengthen

public sector finance management. The programme, which is

home-grown and tailor-made to our particular circumstances,

aims to curb mismanagement of public funds so that we avoid

the recurrence of the cash gate scandal.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, true to my manifesto promise, I appointed

and have maintained a lean Cabinet of 20 members including

the President and Vice President. I am proud to report that the

lean Cabinet has so far performed well and achieved its main

objective of minimizing Government expenditure. In addition,

we have already significantly reduced the powers of the

presidency by transferring some departments from the Office of

the President and Cabinet (OPC) to relevant ministries. This

means OPC is now focusing on its core functions.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, all this is a clear demonstration of the DPP-

led Government’s commitment in delivering on its promises. It

is for this reason that I have titled my address Fulfilling Our

Promises.

MACRO-ECONOMIC POLICY REFORMS

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will continue to design and

implement sound macroeconomic policy reforms aimed at

creating a stable macroeconomic environment for the private

sector to thrive, with a view to transforming the economy to

attain full recovery and achieve sustained inclusive growth and

development. Fiscal and monetary policies will, therefore, seek

to ensure that annual inflation remains low, stable and within

single digits; reduce and eventually eliminate huge domestic

borrowing; reduce balance-of-payments deficits; maintain a

stable exchange rate; and achieve and maintain lower interest

rates. The policies will ensure that the economy achieves and

maintains high economic growth rates of at least 6 percent.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the sound macroeconomic policies that

Government has been implementing in the 2014/2015

financial year have already started bearing positive results. The

economy is projected to register a real GDP growth of 5.4

percent in 2015, despite setbacks such as recent floods and

dry spells that have affected agricultural production. Going

forward in 2016, the economy is projected to rebound with a

strong growth of 6.5 percent.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, although our current foreign exchange

reserves still remain lower than adequate, it is pleasing to note

that recently, our foreign exchange reserves have risen to more

than 3 months of import cover. This increase in foreign

exchange reserves has managed to anchor the stability of the

Kwacha in 2015.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is expected that foreign exchange reserves

would continue to rise with the onset of the tobacco marketing

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season and the resumption of the International Monetary Fund

(IMF) programme.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, annual average inflation is expected to drop

from 23.8 percent in 2014 to 16.4 percent in 2015. This is due

to the combined effect of the stable exchange rate and a

significant decline in global oil prices. It is projected that

inflation will continue to be on a downward trend and will

reach an annual average rate of 12 percent in 2016.

Extended Credit Facility

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am pleased to report that Government

successfully concluded negotiations with the IMF on the

Extended Credit Facility (ECF) for the Fifth and Sixth reviews

in March, 2015. This resulted in the IMF’s approval of the

completion of the Fifth and Sixth reviews of Malawi’s economic

performance under the programme supported by the ECF

arrangement, as well as financing amounting to US$18.1

million for immediate disbursement. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the

successful conclusion of the reviews and approval of the

disbursements is expected to trigger disbursements from all

other development partners, since this signals Government’s

commitment to the macroeconomic programme.

Fiscal Policy

Mr. Speaker, Sir, following the “cash-gate” scandal, the

contribution of donor support to the budget substantially

declined from about 30 percent of the total resource envelope

to less than 20 percent in the 2014/2015 fiscal year. As a

result, the 2014/2015 budget has been largely financed by

domestic resources.

In order to fill the revenue gap created by the deficit in donor

financing, Government intensified implementation of tax policy

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reforms aimed at improving the tax regime to reduce loopholes

and improve on tax compliance and investor confidence. In

addition, Government also embarked on a comprehensive

review of the various tax legislations in order to improve on tax

administration and encourage investment in the country. This

process is expected to be completed by the end of the

2015/2016 fiscal year.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, let me report to this august House that

Government, through the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA),

introduced the Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFDs) to improve the

collection of Value Added Tax (VAT). I am, therefore, appealing

to both the public and business operators to support the new

system and embrace the culture of tax compliance in order to

assist the Government in fulfilling its social and economic

obligations.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government has also taken steps to

strengthen debt management practices and restructure

repayment of outstanding arrears to suppliers in order to ease

pressure on the budget and give Government room for other

priority expenditures. Government will also avoid further

accumulation of arrears through strict expenditure control

measures.

Going forward, Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will endeavour to

reduce its fiscal deficit to levels below the internationally

acceptable threshold (3 percent of GDP), in order to reduce

pressure on domestic borrowing and interest rates. This will be

supported by Government’s commitment to fiscal consolidation

and foreign borrowing through loans obtained on concessional

terms.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the 2015/2016 budget will reflect a prudent

fiscal stance whereby all recurrent transactions will be largely

financed by domestically generated resources with a modest

net domestic borrowing of about 1.1 percent of GDP.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will also introduce the

Programme Based Budgeting (PBB) in the short to medium

term, in line with the ongoing Public Sector Reforms. This

budgeting approach will ensure that ministries and

departments report on achievement of results under specific

programmes that are aligned to their strategic objectives as a

prerequisite for funding.

Public Finance Reform Programme

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Public Finance Reform Programme which

I alluded to in my introduction seeks to, among other things,

restore the integrity of the public service in the management of

public resources.

This will be achieved through:

__



strict enforcement of laws, rules and regulations that

govern the management of financial resources in

Government;



training of civil servants in public finance management;



strengthening and customizing the Integrated Financial

Management Information System to suit the local

conditions of Malawi;



the rehabilitation of the public finance system to ensure

proper accountability, transparency and control of the

financial flows; and



strengthening the Central Internal Auditing Service by

putting in place proper internal auditing systems.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I strongly believe that these efforts will, in due

course, bear fruits in re-establishing fiscal discipline in the

public sector.

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SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC GROWTH

Agriculture

Mr. Speaker, Sir, agriculture remains a key driving sector of

our economy. Government will, therefore, continue to prioritise

the sector to meet both national and household food

requirements as well as support agro industries for export.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the 2014/2015 growing season experienced

extreme weather conditions that included heavy floods and

prolonged dry spells at the critical stage of crop development.

This has resulted in a significant drop in agricultural

production. According to the 2014/2015 crop estimates, maize

production has decreased from 3,978,123 metric tonnes in the

2013/2014 agricultural season to 2,898,123 metric tonnes in

the current agricultural season, representing a 27.7 percent

decline. The results also show a slight decrease in other major

food crops such as rice, millet, cassava and sorghum. However,

except for cotton and groundnuts, other cash crops such as

pulses have registered a slight increase.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, to mitigate the looming food shortage and to

ensure availability of food at household and national levels,

Government has allocated MK8.0 billion in the 2015/2016

budget for restocking the Strategic Grain Reserves.

Government is also discussing with development partners to

provide more resources for the same purpose.

Meanwhile, Government, with support from development

partners has provided early maturing maize seed, fertilizer,

sweet potato vines and cassava cuttings to support affected

smallholder farmers to revive their farming enterprises to take

advantage of residual moisture and irrigation.

Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP)

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in view of the significant contribution of the

Farm Input Subsidy Programme to agricultural growth and

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national food self sufficiency, Government continued to

implement the Programme during the 2014/2015 fiscal year.

Through the programme, a total of 1.5 million deserving farm

families benefitted from 150,000 metric tonnes of fertilisers,

7,500 metric tonnes of maize and 3,000 metric tonnes of

legume seed.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, to address the challenges that have dogged

the programme over the years, Government implemented

efficiency measures that included:

__



delegating procurement of fertilisers to Smallholder

Farmers Fertilizer Revolving Fund of Malawi (SFFRM);



provision of police escort during fertiliser distribution;



vetting of transporters to avoid fertiliser thefts;



conducting fertiliser quality checks to avoid mixture of

fertilisers with sand; and



piloting the use of electronic vouchers to facilitate easy

and transparent access to subsidised inputs by eligible

farmers.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will, in the next fiscal year,

intensify implementation of the efficiency measures in order to

maximise the programme’s contribution to national food

security.

Cotton Up-scaling Programme

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government continued with the Cotton Up-

Scaling Programme in the 2014/2015 growing season. The

programme supported over 389,000 cotton growers with

extension services, farm inputs and pesticides.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is a projected drop of 31.4 percent in

cotton production in the 2014/2015 growing season compared

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to the 2013/2014 season. The drop in cotton production is

mainly attributed to poor weather conditions and reduced area

put to the crop due to poor prices.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will continue to work with the

cotton industry and farmers to improve cotton yields and

production. Government will endeavour to develop backward

and forward linkages in the cotton industry value chains with

tremendous potential to create employment and increase

foreign exchange earnings.

Tobacco Production and Marketing

Mr. Speaker, Sir, tobacco is a very important strategic crop and

a major contributor to our foreign exchange earnings.

According to the 2014/2015 estimates, production is projected

at 181.9 million kilograms and is expected to generate about

US$300 million of income for our farmers. This year’s projected

production is slightly lower than last year’s production of about

192 million kilograms.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is, however, aware of the risks

posed by the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and

the anti-smoking lobby. In this regard, Government will

continue to carry out necessary reforms in the tobacco sector

whilst intensifying diversification of agricultural commodity

production. The reforms will include continued review of the

Integrated Production System (IPS) and placing emphasis on

value addition of our tobacco.

Fisheries and Aquaculture Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the fisheries sub-sector contributes

significantly to food and nutritional security; sustainable

livelihoods of the rural population; and socio-economic growth

of the country. During the 2014/2015 financial year, fish

production was estimated at 116,127.78 tonnes with a total

beach value of K74.33 billion accrued by fishers. This is an

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increase from 112,248.27 tonnes that had a beach landing

value of K53.55 billion during the 2013/2014 fiscal year.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, fish is highly perishable and loses value

through poor post-harvest handling practices. In order to

address this problem, Government completed and

commissioned three ice plants and cold rooms in Nkhotakota,

Mangochi and Zomba. Plans are underway to extend these

facilities to Nkhata Bay, Salima and Blantyre districts.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in an effort to promote aquaculture fish

production, Government, in collaboration with the private

sector produced and distributed over 3.5 million tilapia and

catfish fingerlings for stocking in various aquaculture farms

throughout the country. As a result, aquaculture fish

production is estimated to increase to 4,000 tonnes in the

2014/2015 financial year from 3,500 tonnes in the previous

year.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will continue to promote

aquaculture development for increased contribution towards

food and nutritional security, diversified source of cash

incomes for farmers and creation of employment opportunities.

Water Development and Irrigation

Water Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government recognizes the importance of

providing safe water for our human capital development. In

order to meet the needs of our growing population, Government

continued to invest in short and long-term strategies in the

water sector guided by the Water and Sanitation Sector Wide

Approach.

During the 2014/2015 financial year, Government completed

rehabilitation of Mudi Pumping Station and Walkers Ferry

Treatment Plant as well as the construction of three reservoirs,

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each with a capacity of 5,000 cubic metres together with their

booster stations, pumping and supply pipelines in Blantyre.

These works will go a long way in alleviating acute water

shortages in the city of Blantyre.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government further:-



commenced upgrading works on Kamuzu Barrage in

Liwonde in order to address the structural stability

concerns of the barrage and to improve its water

regulatory capacity;



finalised construction of Songwe Water Supply System;

and



undertook integration and expansion of Salima Lakeshore

and Kasungu Water Supply Schemes.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will rehabilitate and expand twelve gravity fed schemes that

will entail construction of 600 cubic metres localized storage

reservoirs and break pressure tanks and 2,925 Communal

Water Points. In addition, we will commence construction of

450 new boreholes and 166 sanitation facilities at public

institutions such as schools, health and market centres.

Irrigation and Greenbelt Initiative

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government remains committed to promote

irrigation through among others, the Greenbelt Initiative.

During the 2014/2015 financial year, Government continued

to develop Chikwawa Irrigation Scheme in Salima. As a

complementary project, a sugar factory is being constructed at

the Scheme which will be operated through a joint venture.

Construction of the factory is expected to be completed in the

2015/2016 financial year.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government also developed about 2,000

hectares of land for smallholder irrigation bringing the total

land under smallholder irrigation to around 52,000 hectares

benefiting almost 400,000 smallholder farmers. In addition,

the private sector is currently irrigating another 52,000

hectares of land bringing the total area developed for irrigation

to 104,000 hectares.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government further rehabilitated about

1,800 hectares of smallholder irrigation schemes at Nkhate in

Chikwawa, Muona in Nsanje, Limphasa in Nkhatabay and

Likangala in Zomba.

In the forthcoming financial year, Government will commence

development of 42,500 hectares of land for irrigation in

Chikwawa and Nsanje Districts through the Shire Valley

Irrigation Project.

Mining Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government recognises that the mining

sector has huge potential in contributing to the country’s

economic growth and development. For this reason,

Government will continue to prioritise the sector with a view to

increase its contribution to the country’s GDP from the current

6 percent to about 20 percent by 2020.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will reach this target by, among

others, reviewing the legal and policy instruments, including

the Mines and Minerals Act in a manner that safeguards the

interests of the country. Government will also use the recently

completed country-wide Airborne Geophysical Survey to attract

prospective investors in the sector.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, let me also report that in view of the

commitment by Government to enhance transparency in the

mining sector, Government will join the Extractive Industries

Transparency Initiative (EITI) to promote revenue

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transparency. In this regard, Government will formally be

applying for candidature under the EITI once all preparatory

processes are concluded.

Tourism, Wildlife and Culture

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government realises that a vibrant tourism

sector is a significant economic driver that influences all areas

of business including the Micro, Small and Medium

Enterprises (MSMEs). Government will, therefore, continue to

address the structural challenges faced by the tourism, wildlife

and culture sector through the implementation of various

policy reforms and strategies.

In the 2014/2015 financial year, some of the achievements

made in the sector were:

__



approval of the first ever National Culture Policy which

effectively promotes the country’s cultural heritage;



construction of a 21 Km fence in Liwonde National Park;

and



up-scaling of anti-poaching efforts within and around

protected areas in a bid to safeguard wildlife particularly

elephants following a surge in illegal trade in elephant

products.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 fiscal year, Government

intends to enhance the sector’s regulatory and policy

environment by reviewing the Tourism Policy, the Wildlife

Policy and the Tourism Act as well as developing specific

legislation to protect wildlife. Government will also establish

the National Arts and Heritage Council of Malawi and a

Cultural Trust Fund to promote cultural heritage preservation

and fund cultural activities, respectively.

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Industry, Trade and Private Sector Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is aware that the promotion of

industrialization and development of the private sector are vital

to the attainment of desired levels of economic growth and

industrial output.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in order to improve the competitiveness of our

economy, Government introduced initiatives targeted at

building Malawi’s productive capacity. Some of the initiatives

that were implemented during the 2014/2015 financial year

include:

__



development of the National Industry Policy;



review of incentive packages for manufacturing and

exporting companies to encourage value addition and

utilization of indigenous raw materials;



development and revision of a number of economic laws

including the Insolvency Bill, the Warehouse Receipt

System Bill and the Credit Reference Bureau Bill;



development of regulations for Personal Property Security

Act and the Business Licensing Act; and



introduction of innovative lending instruments for

MSMEs under the Matching Grants Scheme.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as a demonstration of Government

commitment, I set up a Ministerial Committee on Doing

Business in 2014 specifically to oversee the reduction of

unnecessary administrative, legal and regulatory burdens and

advance the pro-business agenda. The Committee comprises

Cabinet Ministers, private sector representatives and senior

public officials.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the coming few months, Government

will:

__

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

start construction of the Standards, Quality and

Accreditation Infrastructure at the Malawi Bureau of

Standards in Blantyre;



draft the Commodity Exchange Bill;



establish Special Economic Zones as a tool to spur

economic growth in the country through increased

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI);



review the Investment and Export Promotion Act; and



facilitate legal and regulatory reforms in agribusiness -

related areas through the drafting of agricultural

commodity laws.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, allow me to inform this august House that the

Compendium of bankable investment projects that I launched

in December, 2014 has started to bear fruits. To-date,

certificates for investments worth US$211 million have been

granted. Government will complement this initiative with

continued participation in investment missions in a bid to

attract more investments.

Natural Resources and Environmental Management

Mr. Speaker, Sir, effective and efficient management of natural

resources and the environment is key to the country’s socio-

economic development. I am, therefore, concerned with the

colossal damage to the environment whose economic costs

have certainly been massive.

In the year just ending, Government implemented various

measures to safeguard the country’s natural resource base

focusing on, among others, environmental impact and

pollution control; biodiversity conservation and protection;

climate change management; and radiation control and

protection. Some of the key achievements include:

__

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

development of an integrated pollution control and waste

management strategy that will address the pollution and

waste management challenges in the country;



development of a National Biodiversity Strategy and

Action Plan (2015 - 2025) and the Global Biodiversity

Strategic Plan;



ratification of the Nagoya Protocol under the Convention

on Biological Diversity and the commencement of a

legislative framework to regulate Access and Benefit

Sharing of biological and genetic materials in the country;

and



development of the National Climate Change Policy and

the National Climate Change Investment Plan.

In 2015/2016 financial year, Government will continue to

implement programmes that would promote efficient and

effective management of natural resources and environment.

Labour and Employment

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government realises that a skilled labour

force is an important prerequisite to a country’s socio-

economic development. The Labour Employment Survey of

2013 revealed glaring gaps in the country’s skills development

and vocational training. It is for this reason that Government

has prioritized Labour and Manpower Development to address

these gaps.

To accelerate skills development, Government is in the process

of establishing community colleges across the country. A total

of 28 community colleges will be established, at least one in

each district.

Let me report, Mr. Speaker, Sir, that so far, 11 community

colleges are already operational. Government will develop the

remaining 17 colleges, which are expected to be opened by

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2016. Government will further expand and modernize the

existing seven national technical colleges in order to provide

technical skills required in the labour market.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is developing the Employment

and Labour Policy which seeks to place employment at the

centre of national development by vigorously pursuing

employment creation in all sectors of the economy.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, to ensure that every worker receives a wage

that is above the poverty line, Government revised the

minimum wage from K317 per day to K551 per day. To further

improve the welfare of the workers in this country, Government

is moving towards fixing the minimum wage by sector so that

the remuneration of employees is commensurate with the

performance of their respective sectors.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is aware that child labour has

been a problem in Malawi for a long time. Child labour exposes

children to hazardous work and hinders them from many

opportunities such as education. In this regard, Government

continues to put in place stringent measures to stop child

labour. Government is currently in the process of finalizing a

child labour policy.

Integrated Rural Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as you are aware, rural development is a

catalyst for sustainable socio-economic development. As such,

Government is committed to improve the livelihoods of rural

communities in the country through the implementation of the

Integrated Rural Development Strategy.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the 2014/2015 fiscal year,

Government:

__



completed construction of the basic social infrastructure

at Nthalire Rural Growth Centre in Chitipa district;

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

embarked on construction works of the second phase of

Rural Growth Centres at Chitekesa in Phalombe,

Chapananga in Chikwawa and Mkanda in Mchinji

districts; and



completed the construction of a modern market at

Enukwenu in Mzimba district.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is expected to complete the

second phase of the construction of Rural Growth Centres

during the 2015/2016 fiscal year.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Education, Science and Technology

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government recognises the important role

that education plays in the socio-economic development of any

country. To this end, Government is committed to provide

quality and relevant education to all Malawians to enable them

acquire relevant knowledge, skills, expertise and competencies

to perform effectively as citizens.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the 2014/2015 financial year,

Government made positive strides in the sector. To expand

equitable access to education, Government:-



established 10 resource centres for primary school

learners with special needs and 4 for secondary school

students;



established 540 Complementary Basic Education

Centres;



provided school meals to 1.54 million primary school

learners;



provided bursaries to 7,492 boys and 5,019 girls and

cash transfers to 2,353 boys and 1,693 girls for needy

and gifted students to access secondary education;

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

turned 23 Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSS)

into double shift schools to increase access;



completed construction of 7 girls’ hostels through the

Local Development Fund; and



supported the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and

Natural Resources and Mzuzu University in the

establishment of Open and Distance Learning Centres to

increase access under Skills Development Project.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, to improve quality and relevance of

education, reduce dropout and repetition and promote effective

learning, Government:

__



completed construction of Phalombe Teacher Training

School (TTC);



trained 50 TTC lecturers to Master’s Degree level;



commenced development of a sign language dictionary;



provided special needs education training to 130 teachers

at Diploma, Bachelors and Masters levels; and



increased intake at Malawi University of Science and

Technology from 152 to 300 students.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will continue implementing the following projects:

__



construction of 1,022 classrooms, 238 teacher’s houses

and 18 administration blocks across the country;



rehabilitation and upgrading of 11 Community Day

Secondary Schools;



construction of Machinga Secondary School;



construction of teaching and administration complex at

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Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources;



construction of classrooms, workshops, lecture theatres,

libraries and laboratories at Mzuzu University,

Polytechnic, Chancellor College; and Salima, Lilongwe,

Soche and Nasawa Technical Colleges;



construction of Chiradzulu TTC; and



construction of a secondary school TTC at Nalikule in

Lilongwe.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will:

__



open Phalombe TTC;



increase special needs education grants in all districts by

at least 30 percent;



operationalize the Higher Education Students Loan and

Grant Board; and



Commence construction of Thumbwe Secondary School,

12 girls’ hostels and Chikwawa, Mchinji and Rumphi

TTCs.

Public Health

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government prioritizes public health as it has

a direct bearing on socio-economic development. In this regard,

Government continues to implement initiatives aimed at

enhancing public health across the country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as you are aware, the health sector has, in

recent years, faced numerous challenges including inadequate

essential medicines and supplies and shortage of staff. I am,

however, pleased to report that compared with the past two

fiscal years, medicines and medical supplies situation has

substantially improved. A recent assessment revealed that the

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highest stock-out of essential tracer drugs was as low as 7

percent.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the year under review, Government

continued with the construction of health workers’ houses and

flats for doctors in all central hospitals, rehabilitation of central

and district hospitals, construction of 15 health centres (five in

the north, four in the centre and six in the south); and

upgrading Domasi Health Centre into a community hospital.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the forthcoming financial year,

Government will:

__



Complete the construction of the new Nkhata-Bay District

Hospital; and



Commence construction of Phalombe District Hospital,

Mponela and Edingeni Community Hospitals as well as

the National Cancer Center.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, to further address prevailing challenges in

the health sector, Government will undertake various reforms,

including establishing a health fund to generate additional

revenue for the health sector; revitalizing health insurance

schemes to reduce pressure on public health financing; and

improving efficiency in the management of health services in

both central hospitals and district health systems.

Nutrition, Malaria and HIV and AIDS Management

Mr. Speaker, Sir, with regard to nutrition, Government

continued to implement several initiatives aimed at reducing

disease burden and deaths from malnutrition and other

nutrition related health problems among the various categories

of the population. During the period under review,

Government:

__



provided vitamin A supplementation and deworming

tablets to over 1 million under-five children;

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

intensified nutrition screening in camps which hosted

people affected by the flood disaster for early detection

and treatment of malnutrition; and



scaled up support to people living with HIV and AIDS,

those on TB treatment as well as those with other chronic

illnesses such as cancers under the Nutrition Care,

Treatment and Support program.

In the forthcoming financial year, Government will:

__



roll out the Community Management of Acute

Malnutrition Program to cover 100 percent of health

facilities in the country from the current coverage of 90

percent;



scale up the nutrition program for people living with HIV

and AIDS, those on TB treatment and other chronic

diseases to 50 percent of the sites that provide ART

Services; and



continue with behaviour change communication for

improved infant and young child feeding practices and

prevention of anaemia in children and adults, among

others.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, under the Global Fund Health Sector

Support, I wish to report that the Global Fund allocated a total

of US$574.3 million for the period 2014/2017 of which

US$278.2 million is part of the ongoing commitments and is

already in the country through existing grants which are

ending in December, 2015. Government, therefore, submitted

to the Fund two new funding proposals for Malaria programme

and a Joint HIV and AIDS and TB programme amounting to

US$296.1 million for the next two fiscal years. I am optimistic

that the Fund will approve the proposals having met all the

requirements.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the resources from the Global Fund will

support Government’s efforts to reduce further cases of

malaria in the country as well as sustain and increase the

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number of people receiving free Anti-Retroviral Therapies

(ART’s) beyond the current 524,000 which represents almost

50 percent of those infected with the HIV virus to almost 90

percent by 2020.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the remaining funding will be disbursed

under a new funding model in which the Ministry of Health is

now the New Principal Recipient (PR) on the public side whilst

World Vision and Action Aid are principal recipients for the

non-bimedical components for Malaria and TB/HIV grant,

respectively. A team from the Global Fund is in the country to,

among other things, support the Principal Recipients in

preparing for their new roles. Government is fully committed to

this program and will do everything possible to ensure that the

program is successful.

Youth Development and Empowerment

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is fully aware that the youth play

a crucial role in the development of this nation. Government

will, therefore, ensure that our youth have the prerequisite

knowledge and skills to enable them play a meaningful role in

the different sectors of the economy.

In this financial year, Government continued to implement

various training programmes targeting the youth. In this

regard, I am pleased to report that over 13,400 young people

were trained in technical, vocational, enterprise development

and leadership skills across the country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will complete the construction of Bingu Stadium in Lilongwe

and youth centres in Mzuzu and Thyolo. Government will also

rehabilitate Kamuzu Institute for Youth in Lilongwe and

Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre. Government will further

recapitalize the Youth Enterprise Development Fund and

continue to train youth in vocational business development,

entrepreneurship and life skills.

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Gender, Women and Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government remains committed to the

promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women.

To demonstrate this commitment, I recently launched the

HeForShe Campaign as a Champion of gender equalisation. In

addition, I was the first head of state in the SADC Region to

sign the End Child Marriage Campaign on 25th July 2014.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the year under review, Government:

__



reviewed the National Gender Policy;



passed the Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations Bill

and the Trafficking in Persons Bill; and



through Gender Equality and Women Empowerment

Programme (GEWE), disseminated information on gender

based violence to over 1.3 million individuals, addressed

over 10,000 gender based violence cases and trained 50

women groups in business management.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will implement the National Gender Policy and enforce laws

which promote gender equality and the empowerment of

women.

Child Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, children are the future of our nation. In this

regard, Government will continue to implement programmes

aimed at making our children responsible citizens.

In the 2014/2015 financial year, Government, with support

from development partners, constructed and rehabilitated

1,200 Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, bringing

the total number of ECD centres to 11, 105 in the country

benefitting 1.4 million children.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, in a bid to increase the number of children

accessing ECD Centres, Government will, in the 2015/2016

financial year, construct and rehabilitate 1,000 ECD Centres

across the country. We will also work with traditional leaders

to develop by-laws with a view to increasing enrolment and

retention in the ECD centres.

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT

National Construction Industry

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government believes that a vibrant and

efficient construction industry is a catalyst to the development

of any country. However, the construction industry in the

country has been facing a number of challenges over the years.

Some of the key challenges include low capacity of local

contractors and consultants; lack of supportive mechanisms in

terms of financial credit facilities for local firms; and weak

policy and regulatory framework. In view of this, Government

developed a National Construction Industry Policy which seeks

to promote the development of a vibrant and efficient local

construction industry that is internationally competitive.

Energy Development

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the search for alternative sustainable energy

sources continues to be a priority in Government’s

development agenda. In this regard, Government remains

committed to develop energy projects that are efficient, cost

effective and environmentally friendly. I wish to report to this

august House that Government is currently concentrating on

renewable energy sources.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will continue implementing the

Malawi Rural Electrification Programme (MAREP) after the

successful completion of MAREP 7 under which 157 trading

centres were connected surpassing the target of 81 trading

centres.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will:

__



continue engaging the private sector in the energy sector

through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) arrangement;



implement the Malawi Rural Electrification Programme

(MAREP) phase 8 under which eighty one (81) trading

centres will be electrified; and



encourage electricity generation, transmission and

distribution companies to invest in Malawi in addition to

the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) to

promote competition and efficiency in the sector.

Transport Infrastructure

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the transport sector is a linchpin to economic

growth and provision of social services such as health and

education. It is also a critical factor in revenue generating sub

sectors like agriculture, mining, tourism and manufacturing.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is against this backdrop that Government

has placed high priority on transport infrastructure

development to facilitate local and regional trade and provide

access to markets and other social amenities.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am pleased to inform this august House

that, during 2014/2015 financial year, Government reviewed

the National Transport Policy in order to incorporate emerging

issues in the transport sector such as private sector

participation and inter and intra-modal competition.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, poor quality of workmanship by some

contractors as well as delayed completion of some projects

remains a challenge in infrastructure development. In order to

address this, Government will:

__



assess some contracts with a view to either re-package or

terminate them;

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

through the National Construction Industry Council,

intensify training of contractors to enhance their

performance;



provide adequate funding in order to accelerate

completion of selected projects, particularly those that

have stalled; and



enhance regulation of the transport sector.

Road Transport

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is implementing a Road Sector

Programme which provides a short to long - term investment

framework for the classified road network, unpaved and

unclassified roads across the country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, some of the major projects that have been

completed recently include:

__



the rehabilitation of the Zomba - Blantyre Road; and



the construction of the Lilongwe West bypass road from

Bunda turn-off to Kaunda Road on Mchinji Road.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is currently carrying out a

number of projects to further improve our road transport

system and these include:

__



Zomba - Jali - Kamwendo - Phalombe - Chitakale Road;



Thyolo - Thekerani - Muona - Bangula Road;



Liwonde - Naminga Road;



Jenda-Edingeni Road;



Chiringa - Miseu Folo - Chiradzulu Road; and



Lumbadzi - Dowa - Chezi Road.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, projects which are scheduled for

commencement in the 2015/2016 fiscal year, include the

following:

__



Lilongwe Old Airport - Kasiya - Santhe Road Construction

Project;



Njakwa - Livingstonia - Chitimba Road Design and

Construction Project;



Illovo roundabout - Midima Road expansion and

dualisation;



Karonga - Songwe Road Rehabilitation Project;



Mzuzu - Nkhata Bay Road rehabilitation Project;



Liwonde - Mangochi Road rehabilitation Project;



Expansion and dualisation of the road from Area 18

Roundabout - New Parliament Building - Kamuzu Central

Hospital Round-about to Paul Kagame on Amina Round-

about; and



Lirangwe - Chingale - Machinga Road construction.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, furthermore, Government will reseal and

upgrade a number of roads in the main cities of Blantyre,

Lilongwe, Zomba and Mzuzu.

Water Transport

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as you are aware, phase one of the Shire-

Zambezi Waterway Project was completed and officially

launched in 2010. The Governments of Malawi, Mozambique

and Zambia, through the Southern African Development

Community, engaged a consultant to carry out a feasibility

study of the project. The results of the study, which will be

released within this month, will guide future activities of the

project.

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Rail Transport

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as you are aware, Government signed a

concession agreement with Vale Logistics Limited for the

construction of a 138 km line from Kachaso in Chikwawa

passing through Mwanza and Neno Districts to join the existing

railway network at Nkaya junction in Balaka District. Vale

Logistics Limited has since completed the construction of the

new rail line and is currently conducting trial runs. This

project will provide a cheaper transport alternative to the

people living along the track and provide them with an

opportunity to engage in social and economic activities. In

addition, Vale Logistics Limited also rehabilitated and

upgraded the 100 km section between Nkaya and Nayuchi.

Air Transport

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the 2014/2015 fiscal year,

Government made some positive strides in air transportation,

including:

__



installation of up-to-date communication and air traffic

control equipment at Chileka International Airport in

order to enhance efficiency and safety in operations; and



rehabilitation of terminal buildings at Chileka

International Airport.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 fiscal year, Government

will undertake several reforms in the air transport sub sector

including the establishment of an autonomous Civil Aviation

Authority (CAA) which will facilitate Public Private Participation

(PPP) for the management, operations, rehabilitation and

construction of airports in the country.

Government will also complete the rehabilitation of terminal

buildings at Chileka International Airport and embark on a

project to replace some of the equipment at both Kamuzu and

Chileka International Airports.

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Information and Communication Technology

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government has earmarked Information and

Communication as one of the sectors to champion the Public

Service Reform Programme. In this respect, Government has

been implementing a number of programmes in the sector.

During the year under review, Government:

__



successfully installed and commissioned the Digital

Terrestrial Television network in Lilongwe, Blantyre and

Mzuzu;



launched the Digital Migration Awareness campaign in

April, 2015 aimed at raising public awareness on digital

television broadcasting;



approved the Electronic Transactions Bill; and



commenced a review of the Communications Act, 1998.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the forthcoming financial year,

Government will:

__



enhance Government Wide Area Network uptime to 98

percent through the Financial Reporting and Oversight

Improvement Project and the Regional Communications

Infrastructure Project;



intensify training of public servants on the use of ICTs to

speed up service delivery;



conduct ICT mass literacy campaigns to sensitize the

general public on the use of various e-government

solutions; and



finalize the review of the Communications Act, 1998.

Lands, Housing and Urban Development

Lands

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, access to land is crucial for the realization of

socio- economic development. In this respect, Government is

committed to ensure equitable access to land for various uses

by all Malawians.

Mr Speaker, Sir, some of the achievements attained in the

sector during the 2014/2015 financial year were as follows:

__



piloting of a project to assess land utilization in estates in

Kasungu and availability of idle agricultural estates, out

of which 4,000 agricultural leases were reviewed;



facilitating the acquisition of land for investment

initiatives such as the Green Belt Initiative and for

construction of public infrastructure;



reviewing eleven land related legislations to ensure an up-

to-date and responsive legal framework on land matters;



preparation of land use plan for the proposed Mombera

University in Mzimba District;



identification and assessment of possible resettlement

areas for flood victims in all the 15 affected districts; and



continuation in the re-affirmation and demarcation of

Malawi’s international boundaries with Mozambique and

Zambia.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will continue to implement programmes aimed at improving

access to land for socio-economic development.

Housing

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the provision of affordable, safe and secure

housing for people in both rural and urban areas is at the heart

of Government’s development agenda.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the 2014/2015 financial year, I

launched the Decent and Affordable Housing Programme

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popularly known as the Cement and Malata Subsidy

Programme in December, 2014. I wish to report that we had a

successful pilot of the programme in Msampha 1 Village under

T/A Chadza and Chitekwere Village under T/A Chimutu in

Lilongwe.

During the year under review, Government also:

__



continued to provide mortgage loans to junior and senior

public officers through the Public Servants Home

Ownership Scheme; and



continued with construction of a Government office

building and a clinic at Capital Hill. The two projects are

expected to be completed later in the year.

In the forthcoming financial year, Government will, under the

Cement and Malata Subsidy Programme, construct 15,440

houses across the country translating into 80 houses per

constituency.

SOCIAL SUPPORT AND DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT

Public Works Programme and Social Cash Transfers

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government continued to implement the

Public Works Programme which has two categories namely;

Community Driven Public Works Programme and Social Cash

Transfer Programme. The purpose of the Programme is to

provide cash transfers to poor households to, among other

reasons, enable them purchase subsidized farm inputs and

food during the lean season.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am pleased to report that Government

increased the daily wage for the Community Driven Public

Works Programme from K350 to K485. Through this

Programme, Government reached 136,121 households against

a target of 570,370 households. The gap of 456,000

households may be reached if the Malawi Social Action Fund

(MASAF) IV Project Designated account ceiling is adjusted from

US$5million to US$12 million to allow for implementation of a

full Public Works Programme cycle.

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With regard to Social Cash Transfer Programme currently

targeting Dedza, Ntcheu and Nkhatabay, a total of 21,000

households have been reached.

Persons with Disabilities

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is committed to improving the

welfare of persons with disabilities to enable them live fulfilling

lives as well as contribute to the socio-economic development

of our country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, let me take this opportunity to, once more,

outrightly condemn the recent spate of attacks on persons with

albinism which our country experienced. Let me say, in no

uncertain terms, that the long arm of the law will not spare any

one found to be responsible for the attacks. Government has,

therefore, taken a strong multi sectoral approach in order to

protect and promote the rights of persons with albinism in the

country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the year under review, Government

continued to implement programmes aimed at improving the

status of persons with disabilities. These included:

__



training of 220 persons with disabilities in various skills

across the country;



in collaboration with the University of Malawi, hosted the

fourth African Network for Evidence-to-Action in

Disability conference;



provision of 500 assistive devices such as wheelchairs,

clutches and walkers to persons with disabilities; and



completion of a female hostel at Mulanje Vocational

Training Centre for the Blind which will increase girls’

intake from 15 to 50.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 financial year, Government

will continue to provide assistive devices and other

rehabilitation services to persons with disabilities. We will also

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commence construction of a male hostel at Mulanje Vocational

Training Centre for the Blind with a view to increasing

enrolment.

The Elderly

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government regards the elderly as a group

among our citizenry that deserve special care and attention. It

is for this reason that Government continued to implement

programmes aimed at improving the status of the elderly.

During the 2014/2015 financial year, Government provided

support to 20,000 elderly persons in the form of food, blankets,

and targeted medical services. Government will continue to

provide the necessary support to older persons to ensure that

they live fulfilling and dignified lives.

Disaster Management

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is committed to providing

responses to disasters in a timely, efficient and effective

manner and mitigating disaster risks. As you are aware, Mr.

Speaker, Sir, our country experienced unprecedented flooding

which resulted in 106 deaths, 172 people missing and 230,000

people displaced. Overall, up to 1.15 million people were

affected by the floods. May I, therefore, request that we observe

a minute of silence in remembrance of people who lost their

lives due to the floods.

[1 minute silence]

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I immediately declared a State of Disaster as

a result of the massive flooding in 15 districts of Chikwawa,

Nsanje, Phalombe, Zomba, Blantyre, Chiradzulu, Thyolo,

Mulanje, Balaka, Machinga, Mangochi, Ntcheu, Salima,

Rumphi and Karonga. Following the declaration, foreign

Governments, United Nations Agencies, Non-Governmental

Organizations, Civil Society Organisations, the Private Sector,

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individuals, and other well-wishers came forward with

donations which amounted to MK492 million and US$642,000

as emergency relief assistance to the flood victims.

Government also provided 14,000 metric tonnes of maize from

the Strategic Grain Reserves for distribution to the affected

people and disbursed MK650 million to ministries and

departments to enable them respond to the floods.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am pleased to report that during the year

under review, Government launched the first ever National

Disaster Risk Management Policy which will guide effective

coordination of disaster risk management programmes in the

country.

In the forthcoming financial year, Government will, among

other measures, relocate communities that are affected by

floods every year to upland areas in order to reduce the impact

of disasters on the population, infrastructure and the

economy.

DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government recognizes that good governance

plays a critical role in the attainment of sustainable socio-

economic development. It is for this reason that Government

continues to safeguard and promote good governance, respect

for rule of law and human rights.

Human Rights

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as a result of Government’s commitment to

the observance of human rights, Malawi participated and

contributed to the State Party Report on the United Nations

Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and has been

implementing the recommendations of the report.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 fiscal year, Government

will continue to promote human rights issues, by among

others, enhancing awareness of human rights, promoting

equitable access to opportunities, strengthening legal

protection and equitable treatment for marginalised

populations.

Rule of Law

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in order to develop a strong justice system

and rule of law, Government has undertaken reforms that

include reviewing of the law in order to promote principles of

democracy in accordance with the Constitution and

international practice.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, during the year under review, Government

prosecuted over 987 criminal cases out of a target of 1,000

cases that included homicide cases. Furthermore, Government

managed to reduce default judgements by 70 percent. In order

to promote the welfare of women and children, Government

administered deceased estates to over 2,000 beneficiaries in

the course of the year.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the 2015/2016 fiscal year, Government

will review the Citizenship Act in order to, among others,

consider dual citizenship and eliminate discrimination based

on gender.

The Fight against Corruption

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government will not relent in the fight

against corruption, fraud and theft. It is against this backdrop

that Government is pursuing and prosecuting suspects in the

theft of public funds and abuse of other public resources.

Government is currently prosecuting over 70 cases of theft of

public funds popularly known as cash-gate.

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I am pleased to report that Government has made considerable

progress in these cases. At present, five cash-gate convictions

have been secured in our courts. Government is also resolute

to recover the stolen resources from the people involved.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, as a result of our efforts in the fight against

corruption, Malawi scored 33 points in the Transparency

International’s Corruption Perception Index in 2014. This is a

record high for the country. Going forward, Government will

consolidate its efforts in ensuring that all cases involving

corruption, fraud and theft of public resources are successfully

prosecuted by making available adequate resources.

Public Service Management Reforms

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is committed to foster and

sustain a public service that is results-oriented, accountable

and transparent in order to ensure efficient and effective public

service delivery. It is for this reason that Government instituted

reforms in the public service in order to strengthen and

improve efficiency and effectiveness of the public service. Let

me report, Mr. Speaker, Sir, that notable progress has been

made in our quest to reform the public service. The

achievements made so far include the following:

__



the establishment of a Public Service Reforms

Commission;



restructuring of the Office of the President and Cabinet by

relocating some of its functions to relevant ministries to

enable it focus on its core business;



creation of a One-Stop-Centre for investment at the

Malawi Investment and Trade Centre;



decentralisation of printing of passports to Lilongwe and

Mzuzu;



decentralisation of payment of salaries for teachers to

Education Divisions;

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

restructuring of the civil service salary; and



a ban on attending political functions by Principal

Secretaries and other Government Officers not directly

related to their core mandate so that they concentrate on

their core duties.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, some of the specific reform issues which are

in the pipeline for implementation include:-



establishment of a Malawi School of Government to

facilitate development of identified key competencies;



depoliticization of the Public Service whereby officers will

be appointed to senior positions on merit;



harmonization of remuneration and conditions of service

across the public service;



effective implementation of a Performance Management

System by linking organisational performance

assessments to individual performance contracts;



decentralizing service delivery for efficiency and

effectiveness in the Ministry of Local Government and

Rural Development to facilitate full devolution of service

delivery to some districts on a pilot basis;



establishment of One Stop Citizen Service Delivery

Centres through Post Offices throughout the country to

enable citizens to access various public services and

information from a single point at their convenience;



rightsizing the Public Service to make it more efficient and

effective in public service delivery; and



introduction of a Civil Servants Health Scheme.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, with regard to the performance of parastatal

organizations, I am pleased to report that by midyear, 18 of the

24 commercial parastals had registered surpluses. These

surpluses will, among other things, enable the parastals to

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invest in capital projects and improve their operational and

financial performance. In the forthcoming financial year,

Government plans to further improve the performance of

parastals, including the Blantyre Water Board and the

Lilongwe Water Board, with a view to addressing the water

problems being faced in the cities.

National Peace and Security

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is determined to provide

adequate safety and security to all persons, property and

investments in the country for the enhancement of sustainable

national development. During the 2014/2015 fiscal year, some

of the achievements made in the security sector were:

__



procurement of 50 police vehicles that has improved

mobility of police officers;



enactment of the Trafficking in Persons Bill;



development of migration profiles to make data on

migration readily available for stakeholder use;



completion of Phase 1 of the National Registration

Programme which involved sensitizing traditional leaders

in all the 28 districts on national registration and

registering all births, young persons and deaths; and



identification of a site for a transit shelter for refugees and

asylum seekers in Karonga and another site for relocation

of Dzaleka Refugee Camp.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is determined to increase the

number of police officers in the country. In this regard, I am

pleased to inform this august House that, later this week, I will

preside over the passing out parade of 1,874 police recruits,

which is the biggest number of recruits in the history of the

Malawi Police Service.

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In the 2015/2016 financial year, Government plans to:

__



procure an additional 100 police vehicles;



build capacity in crime investigation through acquisition

of appropriate equipment, training and recruitment of

criminal intelligence gatherers;



enhance border management system by providing

necessary resources and tools to prevent illegal and

irregular immigrants from using unchartered routes;



commence issuance of national identity cards to all

Malawians of 16 years of age and above; and



decentralise the passport issuance system to 6 new data

and documents collection points namely; Blantyre,

Lilongwe, Mangochi, Salima, Mzuzu and Mzimba using

post offices.

Defence

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government continues to remain alert in

order to defend and uphold the sovereignty and territorial

integrity of our country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Malawi is committed to global and regional

peace initiatives. In this regard, Malawi continued to serve in

the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), as part of the UN and

SADC Intervention Force Brigade.

In order to improve the welfare and living conditions of our

Defence Force, Government continued to develop

infrastructure in the Malawi Defence Force establishments,

including the rehabilitation of Camp Hospital at Cobbe

Barracks; the connection of Changalume Barracks water

system to the Southern Region Water Board; and the

rehabilitation of Kamuzu Barracks water supply systems.

These are on-going projects which will be finalized in the

forthcoming fiscal year. Other projects that will commence next

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financial year include the rehabilitation of some structures at

the Malawi Armed Forces College in Salima and Cobbe

Barracks in Zomba.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is also planning to establish a

National Service whereby young men and women will be

enlisted to undergo basic military training.

International Relations

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I wish to report that Government continues

to maintain cordial relations with all countries and

international organisations with which we share a common

vision and aspirations. In this respect, we extended our circle

of allies by, among other things, establishing non-residential

diplomatic ties with several countries.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government also participated in Election

Observer Missions in the SADC, the AU as well as the

Commonwealth. During the year under review, we fielded

election observers in Madagascar, Mozambique, Mauritius,

Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Nigeria.

As a Government that believes in democratic values, Malawi

will continue to participate in election observation missions in

African countries.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, on a very sad note, and as most of you are

already aware, there have been xenophobic attacks against

foreign nationals, including Malawians, living in the Republic

of South Africa. These attacks started on 31st March, this year.

The situation is very worrisome, as six Malawians are

reportedly killed, with over 3,000 affected. Government made

timely interventions to repatriate all those willing to return

home. In this regard, I am pleased to inform the nation that

Malawi was the first country to repatriate its citizens from

South Africa. The first 390 evacuees arrived in the country on

20th April, 2015, and todate, 3,590 Malawians have been

repatriated. This process will continue until every willing

Malawian is repatriated.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, Government is actively engaging the

Government of South Africa in order to find a lasting solution

to this unfortunate development. Government will also seek to

resolve this issue through regional and multilateral

organisations, such as SADC.

Conclusion

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I have outlined the various strides we are

making in fulfilment of our manifesto promises and the plans

for our country. I wish to guarantee Malawians that my

Government has a clear vision aimed at addressing the various

challenges currently being faced by Malawians, within and

outside the country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I believe that as a nation we have enough

reasons to celebrate the gains that we have achieved in the

past twelve months. With the strong foundation we have laid, I

can confidently say that the agenda to transform this country

is on course.

I, therefore, call upon all Malawians to be fully involved and

take part in our efforts to take this country to greater heights.

As a nation, we must unite and join hands to accelerate the

gains that we have made so far as we work to transform our

beloved country.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, at this juncture, allow me to thank

cooperating partners, Non Governmental Organisations, Civil

Society Organisations, the Private Sector, religious and

traditional leaders and all Malawians for the role they play in

the implementation of Government programmes.

Let me also thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Leader of

Opposition and all Honourable Members of this august House

for the critical role that you play in the development of our

country.

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Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is now my singular honour to declare the

2015/2016 Budget Meeting of Parliament, officially open.

God bless you all

God bless Mother Malawi

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Sir