Watipaso Mkandawire of Chihoro Village: On President Joyce Banda's Pending Cabinet

Watipaso Mkandawire of Chihoro Village: On President Joyce Banda's Pending Cabinet

The Urban land question and squatters

A couple of weeks ago the Blantyre City Assembly demolished illegal settlements at the foot of Soche Hill. Most of the squatters cried foul after investing their hard earned money to no avail. Blantyre is not the only city beset by a problem of squatters. In the capital, there have been squatter settlements between area 49 and 18. Squatter settlements have developed in Ntandire, Tsiliza and area 51 close to the Kanengo Industrial area. Squatters also took over some Malawi Housing Corporation (MHC) in area 49 and there have been court battles with the “land owners”. Apparently some of the squatters are not average persons, but individuals of high standing that can afford services of private legal counsel, but are frustrated by deliberate red tape that fuels corruption in public institutions responsible for land distribution. The issue I raise is who really legally gets land to build homes in our urban areas? Or put it differently, whose interests does the Malawi Housing Corporation, Ministry of Lands and City Assemblies really serve? Normally, the city assemblies, the Ministry of Lands and the Malawi Housing Corporation are generally the main players in the land market for residential properties. I am not sure whether these institutions have taken cognisance of the rising population in the urban areas. The reaction to the rising demand for decent accommodation in the urban areas seems to fall on deaf years as the public land system appears too inflexible. One would be tempted to think that the public land system is deliberately failing to respond to needs of housing because of an institutionalised system of graft and corruption. The question again is who do these institutions really serve? Their inaction often crowded with one of the worst forms of bureaucracy has led to squatter suburbs in our cities. Sometimes, I tend to think of these institutions as a financial scam that is duping the public by promising them access to land to build their homes and collecting money from them. It would appear to be no different from the many tricksters in town running extortion rackets. Honestly, if individuals go in the Lands Ministry Offices, City Assemblies and the Malawi Housing Corporation and pay a fee and never get land, what would you call it? You can’t pay for a service and never get one. It appears only those politically connected or willing to pay a bribe are well served by these institutions. Consequently, desperate individuals have now taken matters in their own hands and developing properties without any plans or approvals. Sometimes, I wonder whether any serious planning takes place in these institutions. The Malawi population is growing at a very fast rate and the demand of housing is ever on the surge. We have a lot of individuals that are willing to build their own homes, but are frustrated by the institutionalised corruption that is a norm in the Lands Ministry, City Assemblies and the Malawi Housing Corporation. How many bribes are we going to pay? A bribe at ESCOM, a bribe at Road Traffic, a bribe to the Traffic cops and goes the list. If we can quantify bribes, the treasury is probably loosing billions of resources that can be used to stock our hospitals of essential drugs and develop our education system. Currently there is what I would call two types of squatters. We have the urban poor that have been more affected by lack of decent low cost housing and living in squalor. Most of these individuals encroach public land and build structures that barely come close to decent housing. Later on these squatters start selling their piece of their encroached land to a relatively affluent group of squatters, that I would loosely call “middle class” at a high price. Sometimes the same piece of land is sold to multiple individuals to maximise “returns”. Such is the reality that confronts the urban poor. The “middle class” category of individuals has been frustrated by public institutions to access land and has probably been on the waiting list for many years. Out of such encroached land comes decent homes, but not planned and gives a lot of complications with respect to provision of public utilities such as water and electricity. Never mind the erratic supply of water and electricity, it qualifies for a Phd thesis. The city assemblies in the process lose a lot in terms of potential revenue from city rates as such properties bear no formal registration. Demarcating and registering such encroached land in official registry is a costly process and takes years. City assemblies loose revenue that they need to provide various services. This group of squatters is well organised and has fought some successful battles in court. I don’t think our urban areas should develop suburbs from squatters and create towns in such a manner. While the Land Act has been revised and passed by parliament, serious questions still exist in the execution of land access. Institutions at the pinnacle of land distribution remain one the most corrupt in the country, and potential property developers are frustrated and continue to take matters into their own hands. Is it a question that no one at the political level cares? The question we should ask: whose interests does the Ministry of Lands, City Assemblies and the Malawi Housing Corporation serve? Surely, not the average person that wants to own a home or property but something else.

A rethink on graft and bribery

A fortnight ago, Transparency International, a Berlin based corruption watch dog released results of its corruption barometer results. It is different from their standard corruption perception index, but the results are stunning. In the report, they surveyed most countries in the world, including Malawi. Some of the questions hinged on asking members of the public whether they believed that to get a service, a bribe was required. It was not a matter of ever paying a bribe, but rather a belief that it has to be paid. I will not go into survey mechanics, but the results are shattering. Tuning into CNN, and other international cable networks, it was reported that 95% of Malawians believe that one needs to pay a bribe. The story also made headlines in the Guardian, an influential British newspaper, where a majority of our development assistance comes from. While not rating Malawi as the most corrupt country, the level of corruption belief was the highest in the entire world. In our current global world, perceptions do matter in as far as wooing and attracting foreign capital. Apparently, the story line came out at the time when the 61 billion kwacha talk was on the lips of every one that cares, no matter the degree, about this country. And the current British High Commissioner was also quoted in the media on how Malawians should ask serious on wealth amassing by political leaders in a few years without any serious investment. And this was no end as the ACB chief candidly put it that 30% of the national budget is somehow lost through corruption. We have graft, a form of corruption that is fuelled through politicians. It is a more complicated form of corruption in which we all are de-winged to fight against. Its effects are reflected in our 49 years of average households still living in endemic poverty while a few elites play divide and rule tactics through sophisticated means of manipulation of public opinion. The essence is to maintain a status quo. Usually we had lap dogs that do the bidding on behalf of powerful corrupt leaders, and share the spoils. Meanwhile we cherish at the idea of maintaining good relationships with donors as if we are entitled to foreign grants. The whole essence of political parties not being compelled by law to declare their sources of funding including compulsory audits provides a fertile ground for breeding a “scratch your back-I scratch yours” mentality. Examples are many, but think of the 187 million, National IDs, Land rover deals, as a reminder of how graft continues to deprive the national treasury of resources to develop key national infrastructure. The road network is still in appalling state, and the increasing energy demands can’t go without mention, all essential ingredients for attracting foreign businesses. The idea that we have a Uranium mine at Kayelekera operating with diesel powered energy is baffling. Well, as we swing to campaign mode, it will be interesting to see if any politician will go on a platform of graft. We surely do not British tax payers to pay for paracetamol or to educate our kids. It surely undermines our dignity as an independent country, especially when public resources can be willy-nilly abused. Most corrupt individuals are getting away with it, and it gives motivation including extra incentives to new comers. The war can only be conquered if the legislation on asset declaration including punitive measures for non-disclosure is put in place. Similarly, as long as there is no legislation in place to restrict political party funding including individual donations that come from persons/corporate entities and their surrogate companies, graft will haunt us for years. We may even become a laughing stock in SADC. Without losing the much needed focus, let me say Malawi needs foreign capital to develop. You only need to look at the balance sheets of all commercial banks and realise that they cannot raise enough capital for projects that require billions of dollars to help us cut poverty levels by half. The reality is that perceptions do matter in attracting foreign capital and investment in general. Graft is a huge cost, and the more we are perceived as thus, we can remind ourselves that Africa has over 50 countries, not just us. It’s a competitive environment otherwise we couldn’t be fighting for our lake with its fast dying fish.

Affirmative action in public-private partnerships

A senior politician recently remarked about the ownership of prime properties in urban centres. The observation was right as it so rare to see commercial properties in urban centres owned by indigenous Malawians. The remarks came after the land bill was passed by parliament in which foreigners can only lease land but not own it. Infact, they should lease land with a title and pay monthly rent to the freeholder or government, if it is public land. We have heard of rude and derogatory lines like “dziko ndi wanu ndalama ndi wathu many times and this calls into how Malawi can put in place necessary affirmative actions to ensure increased participation in business by indigenous persons or the majority of some kind. Generally, I would hail the Land Act as a right step to ensure the majority of Malawians are empowered economically by owning their land, and reaping benefits to educate their children. It could even be better if foreign businesses would lease land that has a title to indigenous owners and pay rent on a monthly basis. Since 1994, we have seen a wave of privatisation of public corporations and the establishment of the Malawi Stock exchange(MSE). It has opened a number of opportunities for individual investors to put their funds into some of these companies. But a majority of individuals, or to be precise, indigenous Malawians have not been favoured but preference given to foreigners, especially those corporations that have not listed on the MSE. This is where I have a problem, not just out of national pride or patriotism, neither ambivalence to foreigners, but the billions of tax payer’s money put in establishing these public corporations. Either the capital injected at the onset was a grant or loan; such funds are naturally intended to benefit Malawians and we continue to service debts anyway. It is naturally imperative, that indigenous Malawians should be given preference in owning public companies that go through the hammer by a deliberate affirmative law that defines ownership structure. In some cases, the ownership can be established by law. Otherwise, it is so easy to loose all our key investments to foreigners for a dollar simply because we want to balance the national budget. It is interesting to see how we have tackled affirmative action in this country. Consider the case of the Quota system in selecting students to Universities and national secondary schools. I hold my own opinions, but it has hallmarks of affirmative action despite its controversy. We can draw some parallels and see how it can be applied to public-private partnerships. In Zimbabwe, they have taken affirmative action with respect to foreign direct investment particularly in key national industries such as mining and invested heavily in education. Literacy rates are the highest in Zimbabwe than any other sub-Saharan Africa by the way. It does not mean that we have to increase literacy rates before addressing the issue of ownership of privatised companies or major natural resource investments. The ownership in Zimbabwe is set at 50%-50% for major investments to ensure locals have opportunities in economic development. It empowers the indigenous people in a much great way than a fertiliser subsidy. In our case, for instance we have 15% ownership in a major mine. I would think the reasoning of the quota system should be applied to our natural resource industries, especially with prospects in oil and immediate opportunities in mining. In the United States for example, no foreign investor can own more than 25% of any airline. Now that we are taking major strides in strengthening public-private partnerships, the relationships need to be clearly defined to benefit Malawians, particularly indigenous citizens that call villages in rural Malawi home. We can put this to reality. Precisely, we need to urgently enact laws that stipulate in clear terms that public corporations going for sale or investments in mining/oil have a 50% ownership by indigenous Malawian though a public citizen trust fund. There are many ways of doing it. One route is through a Malawi Trust Fund, whose sole responsibility is to safeguard our economic and business interests as indigenous citizens including potential environmental hazards. People do not take pride in asking for handouts such as fertilisers or farm inputs, but have dreams just like the few favoured foreign elites that control business or get all deals when public corporations are privatised. Most of us would like to see the 31% stake that government intends to sell to the public in the Malawi Airways go to indigenous Malawian investors. While public-private partnerships appear as an attractive liberal public finance restructuring paradigm of modern day investments, we simply cannot ignore benefits that come with affirmative action policies in business that favour the most vulnerable. It is one straight path towards financial and economic independence that we do not have after 49 years of the Republic. Feedback: anyasulu@yahoo.com

Travel options to boost domestic tourism

Some few days ago media stories carried perennial tales about billions of kwacha’s tobacco sales have locked in so far. It is perennial in the sense such hype has never stopped questions about the future of the green leaf. Someone is trying to impress the industry is on track, but the reality is different. We can as well not expect any change in fortunes in dollar terms from the auction floors. At the same-time, I think, as we desperately, and possibly strategically, seek alternatives to diversity, a critical look at travel options to strengthen tourism, a lullaby, that has been played for ages. It looks quite interesting that the Ministry of Tourism took some serious steps to establish some site, instead of posting their strategic plan online, was the case some years ago. Recently, privatisation or liquidation, whatever term you like, of Air Malawi was completed. A new company was established and a foreign carrier, Ethiopian Airlines was the successful bidder. There is nothing wrong with them; at least government did away with a business that was a drain on public funds, even though the new owners are also tax payer owned. It doesn’t really matter, as long as we don’t have to pay our taxes to bail out a three aircraft airline with 400 workers. But what is important is they offer less expensive travel to our tourism industry, and not simply using KIA as another hub for transit passengers, mainly to domestic destinations. It is interesting to see how the civil aviation market has evolved over the years, and indeed how the general public views flying now. One can say that the times Air Malawi did flights to Dubai or the Tuesday shoppers’ flights to the city of Egoli, the general public generally patronised them well, except for a few airline culprits that cost the airline with non-sensical privileges that come with a poorly managed business . They were few tickets paid by the tax payer, in my opinion and the routes financially feasible. There has been a cadre of business persons, not too rich, but medium and small of some kind that have risen over the years. It’s been like, flying is no longer a tycoon’s exclusion, but many small average persons can afford it, and further opportunities exist. The African middle class is steadily rising, and Malawi is not being left behind, and opportunities to get our tourism to a higher level through affordable travel are enormous. Only if our airports are developed and handle a range of equipment, particularly domestic destinations. Our thoughts should now go into investing a lot into our airports beyond Kamuzu International and Chileka but mainly our prime areas of Mangochi, Likoma, Mulanje, Karonga, Mzuzu, Liwonde and Nyika. I don’t think it is in our economic interest to let Ethiopian Airlines use our country as a feeder hub into Addis Ababa, and simply out muscle their two major competitors that way. I don’t think that was the intention of Air Malawi sale, but it may turn to be so. It is important that no excuses of poor airport infrastructure are made for any potential carrier to most of our unexploited tourism gems. Despite the current mess, Malawians have shown interest to travel and explore their own country. But again it all depends on putting extra money to improve infrastructure of all our airfields, and to make it easy for small operators to service our domestic destinations. At the moment it can cost someone more money to fly to Likoma than Johannesburg or Lusaka. Examples abound of passengers stranded in the middle of the lake in some sea unworthy boats because there are no regular flights to the two islands. Just of the many examples, but steadily, our tourism can incorporate a strategy with the capital hill machinery that tobacco substitutes are real, and effective to secure the economic future of country. All we need is some serious investment in our airports, beyond the main two, as Malawians continue to demonstrate that flying is affordable. We need to move with the times as Africa is the next big thing. Feedback: anyasulu@yahoo.com

Rethinking Political fuelled corruption ahead of elections

Not long ago some politician made headlines by claiming we are all corrupt in this country. Sadly, he ended up getting convicted on similar charges down the line. Some would call it a self-fulfilling prophecy but it was more metaphorical. The statement was a matter of defending a regime, at its prime had scars of the Exercise Book, Landrover, Tata, Petroleum and National ID shady deals. As is the case often, someone is usually given the mantra to counter obvious truths, no matter who is calling the shots at plot 1. Most of such acts are committed with a veil of public interest. The intellectual side, however, of the “we all are corrupt line” give us further understanding in how we define corruption. For instance the Corrupt Practices Act, under which the ACB has carried its mandate, with varying degrees of success, is quite clear on specifics of this vice. Simply one would think corruption is some way of gaining undue advantage to one’s gratification through crooked means. But other aspects are not very clear just like our tendency to say thank you with a monetary gift for a service we have duly paid for. Tipping in the third world? Since the ACB was established some years ago, we have often been very critical of its success, and many have linked it to a machine for oppressing political opponents or a publicity stunt minded organisation that has successfully prosecuted “20 dollar bribe” suspects. It could be true, but each one make own judgements. The record is there for all to see. Nonetheless, we continue to view the ACB from the perspective of who committed a particular corruption related crime, and how we define the offence. Our society however has loads of corruption that we have let go and considered as a normal, and it is beyond the domain of any prosecuting agency to fight. Maybe someone was right to argue the fact we are all corrupt. And those that have exercised control over leadership have fully taken advantage and the in the process we seem to forget the roles of an elected government. I contend that using tax payer funds under the guise of personal resources to offer certain public services or social protection is corruption. It is even worse when one’s wealth does not add up. In this day we still glorify some alleged philanthropists that go on the podium dishing all sorts of things to vulnerable people. There used to be some gentleman or lady, can’t remember which one, that used to go around the country with a truck load of maize and some 50 kwacha bills distributing to “his or her people”. Sometimes huge cheques were given out to fund a particular project of some kind. Surrogates similarly run nocturnal errands in suburbs and villages with khaki envelops of different sizes, to corrupt minds of the vulnerable on Election Day. The trend has never stopped and all “alumni” of the thuggery school have behaved no different since 1994. This is a form of corruption that is not within the practical reach of the ACB but nonetheless, it is and we must stop it through relevant legislation. It is corruption in the sense, that the average person is manipulated with a veil of philanthropy in the form of “platform benefits”. But the real catch remains the intent to influence voting behaviour for one’s political benefit using tax payer funds or even personal funds. Any act that is meant to deliberately deceive, such as giving some benefits to a vulnerable person in return for a vote is no different from a clinician sedating their patients to commit a crime. Now that we head toward elections, we can as well reflect on the law of asset declaration. Some soul searching is required. The law on political party funding is almost non-existent. It is time that we enact a law that puts limits on how much money individuals or businesses can give to a political party. If political parties can get millions from individuals, one can expect that in power they will somehow clandestinely pay such donors using tax payers’ money in ways not in the interest of public finances and tax payers. We have too many examples around the country. The current statue in asset declaration is not enough and a fertile recipe to perpetuate wanton abuse of public funds for self-aggrandisement. We need potential leaders that can commit themselves to protect our hard earned tax by enacting legislation with punitive acts for all senior public and elected officials that fail to account for their wealth before and after office. In other words no one should assume office if they have not provided a detailed list of their wealth. Similarly benefits should not be given if one’s wealth is not accounted once they leave office. Otherwise there is nothing to hide, and all public leaders must understand that serving the nation is a matter of trust, not an entitlement. Is there anyone out there seeking the highest office and willing to take on such bold reforms and make it their campaign promise? Otherwise the line, “we are all corrupt” may hold some nasty truths, unfortunately.

Imaging a destination

There are some very hard jobs around, and they include those mandated in whatever way to sell a product or a service. Even better, it can be selling a country as a destination of doing business or investing of some kind. While the line between marketing and advertising is very thin to a commoner like me, it all borders on attracting someone to spend their money without fear of any regrets. Imagine those guys that have to go out there and convince potential investors or tourists to visit our country. Those hidden costs, we all know and yet are so adamant to change things, simply because we have done it that way. And the shock those that have made an attempt often encounter and the consequent scars that are stubborn to erase, like the reappearance of a cockroach. I am told, it can survive sparks of highest thermal blasts. That is how difficult it can be to get a country going despite perennial recovery plans or strategies of some kind. Some weeks ago, I have considered a number of issues, that to some extent define our country. Every action or policy statement we make, generally defines how Malawi is viewed by those that have an interest in this country. Image matters just like one’s “resume” in their professional lives, and otherwise. As a matter of fact, it simply makes the job of those guys at the Malawi Trade and Investment Centre easy, and our various “competent” economic attaches. It is also a fact that anyone with an interest in our country will gather as much information as possible, and from various sources, not just an out-dated government website. It also creates an image on who we are, and whether any talk is indeed matched by actions. The reality is that most of the times, a country’s image is stereotyped, and it becomes very difficult to convince the outside world otherwise. I consider various images that our country has. Some good and some very questionable. On the positive side, Malawi is generally a peaceful country that has known no civil conflict. We have hosted various displaced people from other countries. Similarly we boast a professional military that has undertaken various civilian and peace missions across the globe. I remember the air wing operations in Mozambique, even with two choppers, did great works to save lives. But we are not the only peaceful country, and cannot therefore permanently brag about this. We are corrupt as well and other countries are less corrupt. Now consider everyone talking about limited ours of electricity. It is usually from businesses and households alike. It has now become normal that 24hrs of electricity are a miracle. The water mess has joined the band wagon. And if you are a property developer, the process to have water and electricity to your building can take ages, unless you cut corners, and do things that put us unfavourably on the corruption index. It’s all part of an image we have continued to imperfect and detrimental to our own dreams or portraits of some kind, never mind the colour. They can be blue, black and anything else. Meanwhile the cost of living and capital and living continue to skyrocket, and the Malawi kwacha is steadily heading to the archives. I don’t think a country can easily sell itself as investment destination with lending rates at over 40%, rivalling the perpetually demonised loan sharks in the suburbs. It’s how an image develops and gets processed. If it is indeed a bad photo, you try another shot. But in reality, it means trying out another country to do business or visit for leisure and no surprises. Commons sense is a reality that prevails most of the times. A few lucky cats have the audacity to define the current malaise as an economy in recovery, a case of stone throwing abode a glass house. It doesn’t matter whether the cat is black or white. It is a good cat if catches mice recounted a chinese politician. I reckon cats should be aware tyhere are rats around and go for the kill instead of creating a false image of non-existent hunting missions, when in fact they are devouring the masters food bank, a case of public funds. One can sarcastically link personal comforts that arise from tax payer funded Toyota SUVs. If you can ride in them, it is so tempting to imagine an economy recovering yet staple foods are no-where in sight. Do you remember the wise-man that asked for a list of names that had died of hunger to confirm if indeed such a crisis was rampant? We are creating an image associated with perpetuation of economic inequalities, usually a recipe for class wars. The great thing about images or perceptions is that they evolve overtime and find their way into our ways of life. If leaders remain detached from reality, and create their own image of a country, it actually leaves us in some trap. Someone out there is also creating an image for our country using all the facts, that are ignored as we continue mask the “God fearing” cloth. In attracting serious minded investors or even tourists, not visitors from the other side of the M1 road at Lizulu, facts matter and comparisons are made with countries in the region. In guess, any talk must be matched by meaningful action otherwise, the great world of information technology is on finger tips of any potential investor or tourist that can inject any money into the country. Tales of an education and health systems on near collapse and all these play a part in how a competing world looks at us. We can’t be beggars for life but, can actively define our destiny. We may create a certain image, and engage “marketers” but the world is getting smaller, and until most of us think beyond the day of final breath, the future doesn’t look good.

Best Malawian must roll out now

Two decades ago Malawi was awash with jingles and stickers of the “best buy Malawian”. Even my exercise books had them. It seems the advent of democracy led us to abandon anything associated with the pre-1994 era. Various products had some stickers of buy local, and the public radio run a dozen of adverts. It was not about protectionism but an active way of promoting local industry. I loved the jingles airing on my father’s wooden Nzeru Radio. How we wasted tax payer funds on Makiyolobasi airing bigotry baffles me. Over the years, Malawi has signed various trade agreements that commit us to gradually reduce tariffs on imports. Consequently, we are not going to stop foreign products in the country as it is against the rules. Worse still our trading partners can retaliate, and in other circumstances, file complaints against us for unfair trading practices. I think it is time that we considered rolling the best buy Malawi campaign at the highest level of the country. I mean at the level of President Joyce Banda. When the president speaks, businesses and other entrepreneurs listen. Her words are policy. It is also the time to let local businesses realise moments of high tariffs on imports are fast fading into oblivion to protect them against competition. It is also time they realise the best way to support the Economic Recovery Plan (ERP) is to buy local and in the process create jobs, an initiative the president takes dear to her heart. Read her NABW history. It’s about jobs and economic empowerment. There are many advantages of encouraging Malawians to buy local products. It is not a matter of protectionism, but it gives us confidence. A nation that can fend for itself, and take care of its own. Similarly, major businesses can be on the fore front to buy produce from a group of organised farmers or other producers. Simply, support local before we pay our hard earned foreign exchange, usually for services that are no different or even of low quality across the border. The onus is simply on us, our minds, but we need to get the initiative kicking right at the top. Rolling out a best buy Malawian campaign or slogan is critical factor in creating local jobs. With our extended family system, a job for an individual leads into over six mouths being fed or underprivileged kids/orphans having something to survive on. If we are importing onions, tomatoes, pumpkins, eggs and other locally available products, we surely do not care about the welfare of our own people and the opportunities they seek in producing such products. If we import some of these products, all we are doing is create jobs in those countries at the expense of our own people. Why should Malawian businesses create jobs in Zimbabwe or South Africa? We can let comrades Bob and Msholozi handle that. Businesses must be told or must realise that there is more to corporate social responsibility than traditional media-photogenic philanthropy we see in this country. There is nothing more important to corporate social responsibility than buying local or supporting local industry and in the process create the much needed jobs. Corporate social responsibility is not just donating food at a hospital and going to town about it. It is against the very foundations of human norms, just as it is for believers of any children. The pinnacle of corporate social responsibility is better expressed in saving our foreign exchange reserves through buying locally produced goods. By foregoing certain imports, scarce foreign exchange can be used to buy medication for our hospitals. Such social corporate, though indirect, has a human face and gives capitalism credibility as a model of business. It helps local producers of varying degree create jobs. We all win in the end. There are a lot of climate change benefits as well to buying local. Imagine how much diesel is burnt in getting onions from countries in the region? There are heaps of such products in our major supermarkets. Such imports are contributing to the pollution of the environment and the effects of climate change are properly documented such as floods and dry spells across the country. Why would a supermarket at Ntcheu Boma stock onions from a foreign country, yet the Tsangano Turn off market is a five minute drive away? Why should a supermarket at Mzimba Boma stock onions or mangoes from abroad when Jenda is an hour drive away? The idea is not complex, but the effects are that we are creating jobs in foreign countries and consuming products with a huge carbon foot print and destroying our environment. Next time, before corporate executives brag about their corporate social responsibility, serious questions be put forward on how many local jobs they are creating or destroying. It’s time the president launched the best buy Malawian campaign and the rest can be history. After all, presidential words are policy. For businesses and the consuming public, it is the best support you can give the president in creating jobs. Not donating to her campaign or donning colours of her party. We are in this as citizens who care about the future of the country.

Counting Environmental Costs

Take down some free world obsession and the trek leads into some modern world environment obsession. It goes with tales of a closed society in its hunt gathering blindness but annoyingly loosing its modern day eco-tourism, an obsession of old school, know it all bureaucracy. You may not like this but honestly Malawi is some environmental beauty, albeit conserved by its strange version of conservatism. But ahead of its virgin innocence lie some beauty and, unfortunately great environmental costs. Without alarming anyone of you, I must say, some teenage obsession seems to boggle my mind. No regrets and enjoying any dollar of the tax payer, a decade and hald ago, I took some memorable trip into something Chikangawa Forest. As a teenager, obsessed with science, I got a Mr Chamba, man in-charge of the entire Chikangawa Forest then, some simple conservation questions. Sometimes you wonder why bureaucracy has a stinking jab of a tick. A few years later, courtesy of alleged democracy, old school ground to a halt. An IMF obsession became a norm and very much appears to live with us, despite its, limited teeth. That time, in 1993-94, the Forestry Department was all over the country employing temporally staff to secure the greens of our beautiful country. We seem to have made numerous steps and one can simply count the steps, costly to our own environment. The obsession with the IMF minded, but neo-economic empty know it all, alleged thought of freedom came with many costs. Retrenchments of temporary forestry, but critical staff to the Forestry department became norm. We may have got too excited out the ignorant ride but it takes a perfectly good track down the memory line. One major result out of our sluggish but later day diffusion of liberal market reforms is privatisation. We have gone blindly to sell an entire Forest of Chikangawa to foreign investors that consider economic interests well beyond the border of the country. Protectionism, while pleasing to nationalistic sentiments even avoided on comparative advantage rule, must be secured to indigenous investors. Malawians have trained in carpentry and building and at this stage require no one to prune or bush their pine on doing the same. It is now a known fact that the Chikangawa Forest Concession deal just like the Kayelekera Mine deal, and its holy investors, remain scarlet illustrations of unqualified environment damage to this country. It is time to realise that Malawi will never develop by mining its soils or cutting/exporting its timber. Sometimes when folks like Kamuzu Chibambo, make some statements on deals involving our natural resources, it very much resonates with economic independence, often blurred by foreign investors, that of late seem to be astronomically investing in crocked public relations to fool average Malawians and their natural resources. We have to be very careful and take these men of colour with a pinch of salt. They were brains behind slave trade now turned economic colonialism, but our natural resource ownership remains non-negotiable

Power Interconnection requires ESCOM overhaul

Finally, the power inter-connection deal has been put to paper. I only hope that our negotiators managed to get the best deal, not just the symbolism of normalising relations with our neighbours. We are buying something here. One of the reasons Malawi ranks poorly on the ease of doing business are the daily power cuts. I don’t think any sane and rational investor would put their money in a country that is incapable of meeting energy demands. In the same-light, the power interconnection is a major step towards revamping a path towards private sector growth and job creation. So we can pat government for such a bold step, but we need not forget that the biggest threat to the deal is ESCOM, the implementing agency. ESCOM requires a radical change in how it conducts its business. Such a change can only be made possible with matching political will seen in getting Maputo on the table to negotiate. While demand has risen over the years, ESCOM inefficiencies greatly contribute to the power sector. We still have issues in attracting investors or reducing the cost of doing business. I must say ESCOM requires a radical overhaul in how it does business. While energy demand has grown over the years, their service delivery is far below average and they may not cope with extra kilowatts from across the border, at least in the reasoning of a commoner. It may sound like a car that is perpetually on an empty tank, and suddenly a philanthropic unknown fills the tank to the brim. It can be disastrous as tales of lottery winners have proved many times. As a matter of fact, we need to be cautious in how we build our expectations., ESCOM inefficiencies are easy to see, and the lack of generation capacity is no excuse to justify all concerns consumers have. Just to pick up a few examples. The pre-paid meter system was introduced some years but has grown on a snail’s pace. The idea was good in the sense that it improves efficiencies in revenue collection. But on many occasions consumers have not been able to purchase their electricity at selling points simply because of a network breakdown. The entire Lilongwe city had at some point only three selling points including the Escom office in city centre and two petrol stations. And it was quite common to have two selling points down and a long line of people just to top up their accounts. A network outage is no excuse, and interestingly, it is never publicised in the media. Now consider the load shedding programme. Much as over the years demand for electricity has gone up, it is very strange if ESCOM cannot stick to its own schedules. Once load shedding schedules have been published in various media outlets, rarely have they been adhered too. I should think its engineers put a lot of thought, mathematically, to come up with load-shedding schedules. Could it be that someone simply makes a call and instructs switch engineers to power off certain areas? Not only is such a business practice inefficient, but unprofessional, and for heaven’s sake, it has gone unpunished, and possibly accepted as a norm. It all adds up to the image of a country as bad to do business with its high cost of interrupted utilities. Sometimes one wonders whether in ESCOM’s business practice, electricity is considered a privilege to consumers. The customer service remains quite awful for the high tariffs that consumers continue to pay. It can take someone a couple of years to have their property connected to the national grid. Lots of excuses are often given to induce desperate users to pay a bribe. Either meters are out of stock or the available meters cannot be installed in particular suburbs, as if electricity is a differentiable product like fruits. Faults can take days to be attended, yet ESCOM employees perennially love to claim a thirteenth cheque for plunging most homes and businesses in paid darkness. In the process, businesses cannot produce or plan their schedules with respect to energy needs. Now that government has signed the power inter-connection bill there are two aspects that we have to carefully look at. The inter-connection deal will increase the supply of electricity in the country. On the other hand, it is also important to recognise that some of the power cuts we have had over the years are purely a matter of ESCOM inefficiencies, a corporation that has had billions in loans guaranteed by the tax payer. We need some serious thinking and hard decisions. Maybe it is time we seriously considered breaking up ESCOM into two corporations or overhaul their entire business culture, which many deem awash with indifference in how it operates. Probably one can focus on generation and management of stations. Another corporation can simply be responsible for distribution and cater for all potential private businesses that are interested in power generation business. The fact we will import power from Mozambique means a lot. It means other players can produce electricity but they need not own a national grid. Other investors besides ESCOM can be brought on board to produce electricity in the country. MERA can have more reasons to exist other than try to regulate an old, archaic and ultra conservative corporation riddled with absolute inefficiencies. We need to take our energy reforms more seriously and steadily encourage investment in the industry.

The Kalahari Pula

So we finally got loan from the desert land of Kalahari to help us procure some food, based on some media reports. We will repay it at some stage, but one can also see the ironic 150 cows, allegedly given to our head of state. Sounds like killing two birds with no stone at all. On a personal note, I freak out at the idea of my friend “Chimusoro” from Gaborone and his belief that a strong Pula meant his country is very rich. It may confirm the strong currency fallacy while ignoring the fair mining deals the Kalahari government made plus a strong corruption drive, as real deals. I remember schooling him on currencies during our mini-SADC summits, in some building, in the City of Churches in Australia, as we wondered why not so holy drinks, were viciously calloused . I always used Japan and its weak Yen, as a good example to drive home the argument, a strong Pula didn’t mean his country was better off. It was simply nothing to brag about and I went further to throw a punch on the relatively HIV rates compared to the God loving country. The reaction was whether I had done such a test and the summits ended on that note. But realistically, Her Excellency trip proved fruitful and there is more we can learn from a policy perspective. In her facebook posting, she did say mining was one area Malawi can learn something. All I can say, such a loan was a possible because their mining deals have been made in fairness. The World Bank has periodically produced an index on the ease of doing business. A number of factors are usually considered including corruption, red tape, costs of utilities and so forth. Botswana ranks favourably high across the continent. It also has a robust and efficient financial system. Similarly, the Berlin based Transparency International considers it one of the least corrupt country in Africa. Their head of state is one sober fella in all aspects of the word, including his practical fight against vices that siphon public funds, except when he interferes with the rights of thousands tswana men to go home early. How one judges the parallels to our country is a matter of opinion but we can agree that our fight against the vice remains lip service. Billions of kwachas have continued to go down the drain, and to some extent one wonders whether they have been any benefits from a massive debt relief of the mid 2000’s. Our colleagues to have a transparent government can even be satirized in the “makhirikhiri” dance. Botswana has enjoyed considerable budget surpluses, over the years, and can afford to lend us some quid, not through the back room sham of the USD20million that Uncle Bob repaid through gasoline. I can see my friend Chimusoro put questions to me on whether we have minerals of any kind to generate the much needed foreign exchange, whose appetite surpasses that of an alcoholic for their favourite pint. We are probably at a critical stage as we endeavour to develop our mining industry and properly benefit from it. Our colleagues in the land of Kalahari, have taken it to negotiate reasonable deals on their mining resources to the extent, citizens through government own substantial stake in own natural resources. It’s all been transparent, and not shrouded in some secrecy and it’s a route we can as well take in the face of dwindling revenues. The tobacco story has been told many times. It’s not nationalisation but having a fair share in how natural resource benefits trickle to communities that will bear future costs of associated environmental crimes. If combined, with a credible system of transparency in how revenues are used, I reckon it can translate into extra resources required to invest in education, science, technology and infrastructure. Are we then surprised that the Kalahari guys can spare some change and offers us a loan? Well, their budget surplus over the years are a result of ensuring a fair share of their mining resources plus a tough crack on all corrupt elements. As we look towards becoming a mining nation, there is a lot we can learn, otherwise I would rather our minerals stay in the ground instead of filling pockets of crafty oligarchs and their surrogates. On my next visit to Gaborone, I can expect a very long and tough lecture from Chimusoro. He seems to have perfected his common sense understanding of public finance and governance including the strong currency fallacy. I can’t demean his thinking, I remain on the borrowing side. Feedback:anyasulu@yahoo.com

Malawi Youth Unemployment Crisis

Unemployment statistics are hard to come by in this country but a critical look at some data shows we have a huge a crisis. Either we fix the problem of lack of jobs for our young citizens, the future doesn’t look good. We will continue to have a number of idle young men and women in the prime of their productive lives. To understand a broader picture, consider the 2008 population and housing census. The total population under the age of 20 was 7.6 million, 58 per cent of the total population. The Malawi population is also fast growing, complicating matters. Now consider that most students finish their secondary schooling at the age of 18. In the same census year, the population of 18 year olds was 268000. Now if you consider that they were about 310000 15 year olds that by now have turned 18 and therefore expected to finish their MSCE. In 2013 around 110000 students are expected to write the MSCE exams. Where are the other 200000 teenagers? We surely have not lost a bunch of them to death or some natural catastrophe. Or I might as well ask what they are doing? They are unemployed and with no skill at all. If we look at enrolment at the Universities and public colleges the picture even appears even grim. Universities of Malawi and Mzuzu admit les that 3000 students a year. A few hundred rich kids find their way into private universities or the costly parallel programmes. In all this I bear in mind that over half of the country lives below poverty, or something that is synonymous with destitution. Others end in the a few technical colleges and expensive private colleges, but most just idle at home doing nothing. Now consider that in 2012, the pass rate at MSCE was a mere 57% and the rest 43% are probably idling. With these statistics, we surely do not need to figure the exact quantitative measure of unemployment in general. Each year over 300000 students are eligible to write MSCE and move onto to do specialised trades. It could be interesting to see how the Economic Recovery Plan and the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy took a deep look at the extent of youth unemployment presented by such a simple logical sequence of the numbers. At some stage the DPP government went on a huge crack to chase vendors from the streets. Similar action was taken to get rid of minibus touts. But if one takes a closer and sober look at these two incidents, there are a number of MSCE attempters or holders that have not been absorbed in a formal job market, or the universities/colleges and have nothing to do. And these are in the urban areas, and if you consider that a majority of the youth still live in the rural areas, the wider picture is fatalistic. With the government budget just passed and billions allocated to various activities, fact remains that each year we continue to record number of youths that cannot get a good education. The few that do are not being absorbed into the formal job market. I do not think all these young people are interested in subsistence farming that is being promoted through a multi-billion fertiliser subsidy. As an election year approaches, I am yet to see any aspirant embrace youth unemployment as a crisis that requires urgent intervention. The current situation breeds a fertile environment for all social problems that if not dealt with, 50 years of independence will mature into 100 years of lost time.

Dont let IMF dictate policy, we have ourselves to blame for not leading

IMF’s Christine Lagarde was in the country last week, in what I call a moral support mission. Her trip has also taken her to some African countries. In all her travels, she has commended countries that have taken liberal economic reforms such devaluation and removal of subsidies. In the country, the media has been awash with various commentaries, mostly demonising the IMF for the current mess. Similar sentiments have been echoed in the social media, particularly twitter and facebook. Malawians are quite engaged it appears. But we cannot always blame the IMF for the mess we have found ourselves in. While we are a member of the IMF, we must also remember, that this institution is more concerned with its “bigger” members, the US and Europe, than poverty stricken countries like Malawi, undiplomatic as it appears. That is why its CEO is always European, and its sister agency, the World Bank is always headed by an American. We were not there when they created these institutions at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire, half a century ago. The issue at hand however, is whenever we have an economic crisis, IMF is not always to blame. It is easy to point a finger at the IMF, but in the process we ignore fundamental issues that have led us into an economic abyss. We have to grow and man up and accept responsibility and hold our leaders to account for their actions. In 1992, most of our developing partners withdrew financial support citing human rights violations. The kwacha could not hold for very long, and a huge devaluation followed in 1994. Similarly, in August 1998, another devaluation of around 68% happened. Factors were a mix but human rights violations and misuse of donor funds motivated withdraw of financial support. Remember the story of the Danish and their Danida? Then the rants by President Muluzi at the opening of the Japanese funded Mangochi bridge. The recent devaluation has hallmarks of bad governance effects under the DPP regime. July 20killings, arrests of journalists, procurement of a presidential jet without parliament approval, oppressive laws and the general intolerance of dissent are classic examples. When development partners withdraw such support, devaluation is always a matter of time, no matter how long you fix a currency. Bad governance is not acceptable and in our case, it has historically led to massive devaluations of the currency, given our reliance on foreign aid. The weak export base complicates the problem. We learnt that you can chase tobacco buyers or suspend tobacco sales, but cannot influence the price. So how does IMF come in? I don’t think the IMF has ever had a hand in advising the government of Malawi to enact laws to limit the rights of its citizens. Neither has it ever recommended suppression of free speech. Most of our foreign resources come from bilateral donors who have their own ambassadors in Lilongwe and make their own assessments on matters of good governance, cardinal to the aid they give. We should remind ourselves that all donor inflows are basically foreign tax payers’ money. Specifically, not all foreign tax payers are filthy rich, but folks that simply work hard and value accountability in which public resources are used. It does not require IMF to tell us MPs do not need an allowance for simply sitting in parliament, yet they have a salary and a subsistence allowance while away from their homes. Such resources can be channelled to developing new energy sources or equipping empty pharmacies in public health facilities. What does this lead us to? While the IMF is often an easy target, we usually forget that it never participates in elections. Neither does it involve itself in electing leaders that run this country. Malawians elect leaders to govern, and are ideally expected to lead this country to some level of prosperity. Instead of turning our anger on the IMF, I reckon it is important that we focus our attention on elected political leaders or those that aspire for public office. Malawi’s rank on ease of doing business index is 129 out of 144 countries. If we are to have a readily available supply of forex, instead of blaming the IMF, we need to work our way up to become a major destination for doing business. The onus is on our political leadership to not only think, but act strategically beyond their political life span. We cannot point our fingers at the IMF for hourly power cuts that scare away potential investors capable of producing for the export market. Neither can we point a finger at the IMF for shady mining deals that are costing us much needed foreign exchange. Similarly we cannot point a finger at the IMF for a financial system that is not easy for tourists to easily transact and eventually keeps them away. It is not the mandate of the IMF to ensure that all Malawian kids have a good education irrespective of the financial status of their parents. It will not require the IMF to reform our public service to effectively deliver and reduce costs of doing business. Consider some of the most incompetent public institutions, the Road Traffic Department. It takes over 5 months to get a registration to run a car hire business unless you corrupt a few guys. Similarly, it will take many months to renew a driver’s license unless you pay a bribe. Consider the case of another world class incompetent institution, ESCOM. It takes over a year, unless you pay a bribe, to have a property connected to electricity even when the electric pole is a few meters away. The level of corruption remains appalling. Such are simple examples but if you factor in productivity losses by businesses, it makes Malawi a costly destination to do business, unattractive to be precise. Consequently, we are losing out on all potential foreign capital inflows needed to drive exports from non-traditional sources. And blame IMF? IMF is not responsible for the mess we are in, but I still don’t believe their textbook experiments. While it is fashionable to make them an easy target, it is important that leadership of the country is responsible for governing . Like we discussed a week ago, our issues revolve around strong political will to take brave decisions. IMF should follow our agenda, we are a sovereign member state.

Malawians are not lazy as portlayed

In a Johannesburg suburb, some years ago I tumbled on a community newspaper. Curiously I checked the classified adverts section and found something interesting, mind breaking for a less travelled freak like me then. Prospective employers were looking for gardeners, security guards as well cooks or child minders and something like that. More interesting was the fact Malawians were being greatly sought in such jobs yet branded lazy recently in their own turf. Maybe prophets have no honor amongst their peers, I doubt though. Greeks and Macedonians still fight over the origins of Alexander The Great. I suspect he remains a Molele myth of Thyolo highlands like the Kahuna. Naturally an employer looks for a hard working, honest and those that abide by the rules. It’s that that simple. I was amazed, but not surprised, even though if I put aside any element of nationalistic bias of any citizen. Some bluff as you would call it anyway. Some few days ago, based on some media reports, a well politically schooled dinosaur raised some laziness issues based on so called undeserved perennial French leave questions. The tirade goes like most of us are lazy; hence bear unquestionable responsibility about the state of this God loving country, despite manifestos of all forty six kangaroo policy political parties. Malawi has hallmarks of poverty ridden country despite its corruptly few, but unexplained riches of its aristocracy. That we farm for three months or thereabouts reminds me of winter crop estimates that the farming ministry goes to town about, when, and if suits them. Funny enough, a walk or a drive along M1, despite the state of your car, Mercedes or better than walking tin on public rubber, I often see fruits of some hard work, not laziness, and abuse of a social contract. Put it simple, I often see women with babies and their partners, on their backs at Jenda, Lizulu, Dedza and other places along the M1 road all year around for 24hours selling fruits of their hard work and expecting more from their elected leaders that doesn’t come. Well rounded Malawians will take some recourse in any form of local adages like the “mudya nyemba and mtaya makoko” stuff to ignore, apparently at their own peril, the arrogance that publically elected leaders bring to define laziness. All I know is that the economy of this country is agriculture based, precisely run by the so called lazy citizens that continue to pay taxes to finance corrupt behaviours of privileged cats that drain our health system of its limited resources for their demise at some mzansi expensive clinic for their cool cat funerals, an obsession of some bat brained Kenyan legislators. It is quite easy to think that most Malawians are lazy, but soberly difficult to collaborate a diaspora line of our citizens being jealously sought after, in this narrate. It is not surprising that most of our folks, unskilled, but full of determination are being sought after to work in some of the countries around us. What work do they do there any way? Some basic stuff that they can do here but apparently our systems have grown at the pace of some hard steel. Our national censuses have shown that rural-urban migration is increasing at a very fast rate yet key decision markets thins a census is a mere NSO decade undertaking. Our quota wars in the University bear enough testimony for education cravings, yet we fund special undefined activities to some astronomical figures in the budget. Some anecdotal evidence points to the fact Malawi is one of the most urbanizing countries in the world. Such a story is collaborated by most of our people leaving rural areas for the cities in search of opportunities. While it is not the job of government to employ, Capital Hill bears a lot of responsibility in creating such an enabling environment such as infrastructure. If takes a decade to construct a 101 Karonga-Chitipa road, yet Admarc trucks can move tones of maize year in and out from Chitipa, grown by a lazy farmer at the expense of the tax payer, lazy on the same line. Arrogance is a simple concept I think but you know why. While primary schools had some lessons in handicrafts such as making hoes or axes, I don’t think it condemns Malawians to four month farming. Irrigation farming is not new. The folks at Likangala, Limphasa, Hara and Lufira with the golden Taiwan, the legacy that lives on, are prime cases of perennial rural hard-workers existing in this country and taking care of their lives while politicians preach some rhetoric, glorifying undue old fashioned successes. The spirit of entrepreneurism is vivid and well sunk in the average person that is not abusing the privilege of being in control of tax payers money. I don’t think anyone should preach success simply because they have had a privileged position of allocating themselves undue wealth at the expense of public trust. Unless we stop, doubtful in contemporary circumstances, elected public figures and their surrogates from stealing public funds, all talk about raising living standards is nothing but old colonial school colonial talk under the skin of the guy next door. We are not lazy but deserve more. Now if we are to make our labour force productive, a few basics. Being agrarian economy, I think it is important we position ourselves to encourage investment in value adding activities. But this can only work, partly if cheap finance is accessible to able entrepreneurs and not political sophomores aligned with a powerful dude whose obsession is with a next election. If roads to rural Malawi remain cheap budget talk, our citizens are tired of the fertilizer subsidy even though the school curriculum defines agriculture as crop growing for food and enjoyment. If you can cant access markets because Admarc resources have been allocated to some secret non-agricultural vote, the arrogance of calling each one of use lazy becomes a concocted norm, unfortunately not the reality of common sense.

The Malawi Diaspora prefers informal channels, banks are just too uncompetitive

Over the years various governments and international institutions have recognised the role diaspora citizens play in developing their home countries. Put it simply, nationals working overseas do regularly remit funds to their families back home. Malawi is no exception. Philippines is well renowned for its diaspora community to the extent remittances constitute over half of GDP. A proliferation of the money transfer businesses across the country, particularly Western Union and Money Gram is a great sign funds are coming in the country. Government recently established a diaspora desk in its Foreign Affairs Ministry, though the venture remains unfunded to-date. Nonetheless, it is a candid recognition that Malawian citizens beyond the border, irrespective of their jobs, are a critical aspect, particularly in addressing foreign exchange shortages. With tobacco revenues, fast a thing of the past, the Malawian diaspora is infact our export of labour. Bankers have also recognised the diaspora as a key player in their business. Former Reserve Bank Governor made some visits to some countries abroad and met Malawians. The gist of Ligoya’s meetings were to encourage Malawians living abroad to open foreign currency denominated accounts in Malawian banks. To make issues attractive, RBM relaxed some controls to the extent holders of foreign currency accounts can withdraw their money in a currency of their account and not necessary the kwacha equivalent. Standard Bank Malawi bankers too joined the fray and went abroad to market foreign currency accounts to citizens living overseas. One is not sure the impact of such efforts with respect to a surge in foreign currency denominated accounts. There are a number of issues our diaspora community struggles with. Nonetheless there is a lot of money coming into the country, but outside the banking system. It remains crude reasoning that people will open foreign accounts simply because they are Malawians or better citizens. Other factors are considered such as interest rates on offer and the expected return on their money. Usually, the people we are encouraging to open foreign currency our accounts in our banks have alternative banks wherever they are. Rationally, their funds will be put in a bank or a country where it earns more interest, and easily accessible. Nationalism is not a factor and therefore foolhardily to use it as a tool to woo potential clients to transact in uncompetitive foreign currency products. The world has become so global and everyone is looking for a bargain somewhere, not necessarily their country of origin. Currently no bank offers more that 2% on foreign currency accounts in this country. Now consider the way banks transact their international business. All banks have various foreign currency accounts with their correspondent banks all over the world. Usually the foreign currency expected from diaspora citizens is held in such accounts where our banks earn more with respect to interest rates. Rationally it makes sense for a Malawian diaspora in Australia to keep their money in Sydney where some Malawian bank has an account, and both earn a higher rate. It doesn’t make sense to let a local finance institution bank on your behalf in a competitive market and pay you peanuts in return. In the same way banks behave, individual persons act similarly, rationally to be precise. Sometimes we need not be surprised that despite calls to encourage our diaspora to open accounts, responses remain lukewarm given the uncompetitive nature of foreign currency banking in our institutions and the tedious processes of opening such accounts to existing customers. Informal channels of money transfer have increased as a result of the way the banking system operates. It is an open secret that people make arrangements to procure goods and services overseas using their diaspora networks and simply transfer cash to family member or friends. For instance a Malawian in London might simply purchase equipment on behalf of a friend in Lilongwe at their own agreed exchange rate. The person in Lilongwe simply gives kwachas to a family member or relation within town. Goods arrive from the UK and duty is paid at Mwanza, and the deal is done. The Malawi banking system consequently looses out on forex simple. It is norm of transacting to avoid the uncompetitive rates currently on offer. And recently, Minister of Information went all over town schooling us on the importance of information technology in national development. Now I find such talk very cheap particularly with respect to issues of the diaspora as potential sources of foreign exchange. No government business is transacted online at this stage, a loss of foreign exchange to the guy on the street. Just a few examples. For instance, if diaspora citizens can pay for certain services online such as driving licenses, utility connections among others through various credit cards linked to Malawian banks, forex would find its way into our official system, not informal channels as the example I narrate above. Otherwise public offices are more than happy for someone to travel from London and queue to pay some kwacha. Banks are also part of the equation in the way they deliver some of their services. All Malawian banks up to this day do not have a facility where an existing customer can open an account online. I am talking about clients that have accounts and have been identified through all the screening that comes with opening a first account. Such clients are known by the bank and some even use their internet banking facilities. If they are in the diaspora, and intend to open foreign currency accounts, our banks expect them to print some PDF forms, ink filled, scanned and emailed to some manager that will take days before attending to them and weeks before an account is opened. It’s a long process but can be made efficient if technology is properly embraced and old habits of paperwork are thrown into the bin. Potential clients of such accounts have no reason to open the not only uncompetitive foreign currency accounts, but also avoid a tedious archaic application process. Otherwise the Malawian diaspora is remitting money in this country on a daily basis, unfortunately outside the banking system.