The prestigious Castel Challenge Cup got underway in Lilongwe after a stunning opening ceremony featuring a very entertaining ceremonial match between Silver Strikers and FCB Nyasa Big Bullets.
Silvers’ Uchizi Vunga was the hero of the day after scoring a brace to assist his team beat Bullets in a historical 5-goal thriller played at the Bingu National Stadium (BNS).
The central bankers scored their first goal just some seconds before half time through Tathedwa Willard.
Both sides started very well in the second half but it was Silver Strikers who got their second goal in the 55th minute through Uchizi Vunga.
Precious Phiri pulled one back for the People’s team to keep them back in the game with a beautiful finish after a lapse in Silver’s defence.
Hassan Kajoke leveled the scores with a beautiful finish in the 81st minute but the joy was short leaved as Vunga restored Silver’s lead just a minute later with a simple finish after beating an offside trap by Bullets.
Castel Malawi unveiled the K1 billion three-year sponsorship for Castel Challenge Cup with an aim of uplifting sports in the country.
For this year alone, Castel is pumping in over K320 million towards the cup.
The national champion will receive K50 million while the runners-up will get K25 million.
The two semi-finalists will walk away with MK10 million each while four quarter-finalists will get K5 million each.
The competition will start at district level where 31 district champions will receive MK750,000 each while 17 teams that will qualify from the regional level will get K1 million each.
A few weeks ago, Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) Governor, Wilson Banda, disclosed that despite the bank making an operating profit of K93.6 billion in the last financial year, the May 2022 devaluation of the kwacha rapt its bottom line with close to K187 billion.
He also said Malawi’s foreign exchange (forex) is dwindling, a situation he said may pose challenges for the country to foot its foreign currency denominated bills.
Obviously, there is need for urgent measures to stop the hemorrhage of forex from the country and, at the same time, to come up with creative ways to generate the same. Looks like a black cat but it can be done.
There have been so many proclamations as to what Malawi must do to solve the forex conundrum. Various solutions have been thrown into the fray by different quarters. Why are we fixated at the same spot?
The most common of the solutions is that Malawi should start producing and exporting so that as a country, we start earning the much needed forex to prop-up our import cover as well as deal with various situations that require forex to solve.
In as much as this is the right way to go, we must accept that so many things are easier said than done. And I am not the only one saying this. It requires a lot of heavy lifting and often times, making unpopular decisions.
It is not ‘mission impossible’. The first thing that has to be done is to seal the loopholes that are causing forex to grow legs from this country. Forex flight from this country MUST be stopped or kept to a bare minimum.
FOREX THEFT
There is a lot of forex theft in Malawi, and to say that cases of smuggling are on the increase is an understatement.
According to recent reports, by the Global Financial Integrity (GFI), Malawi loses over $650 million (K650 billion) annually to illicit financial flows (IFFs) largely through trade misinvoicing.
This figure (K650 billion) is not small change and if put to right use, it can contribute significantly to the social and economic development of Mother Malawi.
MONEY LAUNDERING
Malawi will continue to suffer if significant progress will not be made to deal with the elephant in the room in as far as draining foreign exchange from this country is concerned.
The local press has always been flush with reports of investigations about companies that are mostly owned by Malawi residents of Asian (or Indian) origin.
These companies are often in the habit of using fake Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) documents and shell firms in the name of importing goods from outside the country while externalising foreign currency.
These people are obviously not patriotic and do not have the interest of Malawi at the top of their agenda. Given a chance, they will do everything to run down the country and leave it reeling.
OTHER SMALL WAYS
There are also numerous other small ways through which this country loses the forex that could otherwise have been used to procure important commodities integral to the social and economic development of the country.
For example, this country has just turned into a net importer of bananas, and more recently tomato from Tanzania and Zambia. Really? Does that mean we can’t produce our own tomato?
As a result of this, the Malawian economy continues to suffer in critical areas such as the lack of medicine in hospitals; and lack of forex to procure critical commodities such as fuel.
WHAT OUGHT TO BE DONE
Obviously, to recover money lost in illicit trading, the first and most important step is to seal the loopholes. This can come in the form of reporting any suspicious activities that occur pointing to theft, money laundering or any other activities that would cause forex flight from the country.
In the case of Malawi, there have been so many calls from experts and even plebeians that it is high time we need to start producing as a country.
Kudos to the government of President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera for its effort to create an enabling environment for investment in key economic sectors such as agriculture, mining and tourism. The Malawi Vision 2063 is a perfect guide towards that economic nirvana, and if implemented faithfully, Malawi can take a quantum leap away from the current forex gridlock.
In the meantime, the government ought to take decisive action, not to prick small players in the peripheral, but to go for the real culprits who are really running down our economy.
DISCLAIMER: The author is writing in his personal capacity.
Malawi President Dr Lazarus Chakwera says his vision is to see Africa develop and be able to things on its on.
Chakwera was speaking at Kamuzu International Airport (KIA) during his departure to Ghana.
Chakwera described the meeting important and virtal for Africa.
“It is very critical that we, as Africans with the Bank that we started 30 years ago, should come together and discuss, not just what is happening but what could have happened and what should happen in order for Africa to really take off as a continent that has so much resources and that has so much future which needs to be realized as we look for the Africa we want 2063”
Chakwera is destined for Accra, Ghana, for the 30th Annual Meeting of the African Export-Import Bank (AFREXIMBANK) from 18th to 21st June 2023.
According to a statement Chakwera will depart Kamuzu International Airport Saturday, 17th June, 2023, at 10:00 hours, and return to Malawi on 21 June, 2023, at 15:00 hours.
The statement which Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released show that President Chakwera will also take advantage of the meeting to engage in bilateral talks with other African leaders on matters of mutual interest.
The statement further says the annual gathering which coincides with the 30th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the bank, offers African countries a platform to discuss economic and international trade promotion.
The meeting is expected to be heard under the theme ‘Delivering the Vision, Building Prosperity for Africans’.
“The annual meeting, which coincides with the 30h anniversary celebration of the establishment of the bank, is important for African countries as it offers a platform for leaders to discuss economic and international trade promotion.
The theme of this year’s meeting is Delivering the Vision, Building Prosperity for Africans. Key issues to be considered during the meeting include economic integration; industrialization; food security and peace and security in Africa. For Malawi, AFREXIMBANK has been very instrumental in supporting the country’s economic development. The bank is currently supporting the development of industrial parks in key locations in Malawi.
The President will, also attend the meeting to promote trade and investment linkages in order to stimulate economic growth while taking advantage of the meeting to engage in bilateral talks with other African leaders on matters of mutual interest.
Malawi President Dr Lazarus Chakwera says his trip to Accra Ghana is vital not to Malawi only but the entire Africa.
Chakwera was speaking at Kamuzu International Airport (KIA) during his departure to Ghana.
Chakwera is destined for Accra, Ghana, for the 30th Annual Meeting of the African Export-Import Bank (AFREXIMBANK) from 18th to 21st June 2023.
Chakwera leaving for Ghana
“It is very critical that we, as Africans with the Bank that we started 30 years ago, should come together and discuss, not just what is happening but what could have happened and what should happen in order for Africa to really take off as a continent that has so much resources and that has so much future which needs to be realized as we look for the Africa we want 2063” he said.
According to a statement, Chakwera will depart Kamuzu International Airport Saturday, 17th June, 2023, at 10:00 hours, and return to Malawi on 21 June, 2023, at 15:00 hours.
The statement which Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released show that President Chakwera will also take advantage of the meeting to engage in bilateral talks with other African leaders on matters of mutual interest.
The statement further says the annual gathering which coincides with the 30th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the bank, offers African countries a platform to discuss economic and international trade promotion.
The meeting is expected to be heard under the theme ‘Delivering the Vision, Building Prosperity for Africans’.
“The annual meeting, which coincides with the 30h anniversary celebration of the establishment of the bank, is important for African countries as it offers a platform for leaders to discuss economic and international trade promotion.
The theme of this year’s meeting is Delivering the Vision, Building Prosperity for Africans. Key issues to be considered during the meeting include economic integration; industrialization; food security and peace and security in Africa. For Malawi, AFREXIMBANK has been very instrumental in supporting the country’s economic development. The bank is currently supporting the development of industrial parks in key locations in Malawi.
The President will, also attend the meeting to promote trade and investment linkages in order to stimulate economic growth.
As the Chakwera administration continues its effort to manage the issues of Refugees and Asylum seekers , Homeland Security Minister Dr Ken Zikhale Ng’oma has warned to fire police officers that are conniving with refugees and asylum seekers in an attempt to sabotage the ongoing relocation exercise to Dzaleka camp.
The Minister issued the strong warning at a meeting with Senior Police Officers in South West Region on Saturday
Zikhale addressing senior Police Officers
“Resist corruption, do not allow bribes, bribes are killing our economy. We want disciplined, vibrant, effective and efficient police service,” said Ng’oma adding that refugees have been eroding the country’ economy by doing informal businesses in residential areas.”
Deputy Regional Commissioner for the South West, Mavuto M’bobo says they will continue to work professionally while asking the government to address issues of mobility, accomodation and lack uniforms.
Zikhale has received applause from various stakeholders including UNHCR for his approach towards dealing with Refugees and Asylum seekers who had infiltrated the Malawi communities illegally and using fake documentation
