Malawi gives farmers a chance

Mail & Guardian South Africa

In a two-bedroomed iron house in the
southern district of Phalombe, Malawi, Simati Matupa is watching the
television he has just bought. Seated beside the 37-year-old farmer is
his wife. The Matupa family had dreamed of owning a television set for
a long time, but it was difficult because of a lack of money. But this
year, after a bumper harvest, they decided the time had come.





Phalombe is about 90km south of Blantyre, Malawi's commercial capital.
Here the Matupas own four acres of land, but for a long time the family
did not have enough food to last the whole year because of high costs
of farm inputs such as seed and fertiliser.


The Agricultural Input Subsidy Programme was introduced in 2004 by
Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika, immediately after he took office.
Last year the family was among the list of targeted poor households to
benefit from the programme.


"I received a 50kg bag of subsidised fertiliser and 10kg of seed. I
planted the seed and after applying fertiliser using the technological
skills from agricultural extension workers, I was surprised at the
yield I harvested," says Matupa.


He did not cultivate all four acres of land "because I was not sure
whether I would make it". He harvested enough to feed his family and
had extra maize, which he sold to buy a television set, two bicycles
and a three-CD player. He was also able to open a grocery store.
Smiling broadly, Matupa says he hopes the subsidy programme continues
for the betterment of many poor farmers. He says a number of farmers in
the district have enough food because of the programme. "If I were
asked whether the programme should continue or not I would prefer the
former."


Matupa is one of the millions of Malawians benefiting from the subsidy
programme. Patrick Matemba from the same district of Phalombe told the
Mail & Guardian, soon after receiving a 50kg bag of subsidised
fertiliser, that he echoes Matupa's sentiments. "This programme has had
a significant impact on the lives of poor Malawians. Most of us are
food secure because of this programme," he says.


Mutharika introduced the programme after noting in 2002 that Malawi was
in a crisis as a result of drought in some parts of the country and the
high costs of farm inputs. During the last growing season a 50kg bag of
fertilizer was selling at $25. A subsidised bag is $6. An estimated 60%
of the population lives on less than $1 a day, a situation the
president has on a number of occasions said could be changed for the
better.


Since Mutharika took office Malawi's economy has grown to 6% annually.
Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe has attributed this growth to the
government's "good economic policies".


For the first time in years farmers are in a position to buy cars or
build new iron-sheet houses, an indication that the subsidy programme
is benefiting the poor. The sick, especially those infected with HIV,
have enough food to eat and so can prolong their lives. About 14% of
the country's 13,6-million population are HIV-positive.

From the start Mutharika, who is also the
country's minister of agriculture and food security, said he would not
allow "Malawi to continue begging from donors when the country is able
to produce enough food to feed itself". The president has told the
nation that donors, especially the United States and Britain, did not
want to fund the subsidy programme because "they are saying the
programme would be costly to the country". But he has vowed to continue
with the programme "as long as he remains the president".


The cost of fertiliser has gone up from MK4 000 last year to MK11 000
this year. Despite the increase, the president reduced the cost of the
subsidised fertiliser by a further 20% this year to allow more farmers
access.


In addition, Mutharika hasmade irrigation one of his priorities in
achieving food security. Two years ago his administration budgeted for
400 treadle pumps per MP, to be distributed in the MPs' respective
constituencies.


It is because of the president's leadership that, in the 2006/07
marketing season, Malawi was able to harvest an extra 500 000 tons of
maize. Some of the maize was sold to Zimbabwe. Malawi also exported
maize to other countries in the Southern Africa Development Community,
including to Lesotho following drought in that country.


Mutharika's efforts have been recognised by a number of international
organisations and countries. Recently he received from the Food,
Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) the
first Food Policy Leadership Award for transforming the country from
food deficit to food surplus.


The annual Food Policy Leadership Award was established in 2008. It has
no cash prizes but includes, among other things, a trophy, a signed
certificate and some prizes donated by FANRPAN partners.


FANRPAN board member Sindiso Ngwenya says the success of Mutharika's
subsidy programme has en-abled the country to feed itself as well as
its neighbours.


Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Frank Mwenefumbo told
a Kenyan delegation, during a September visit to learn more about the
subsidy programme, that "without the subsidy programme Malawians would
have starved to death". He said there were no "immediate plans to stop"
the programme and that discontinuing it would not be in the best
interest of the nation.


Although the programme has received overwhelming support from the
people, it has shortcomings. Some targeted individuals fail to get the
coupon vouchers because of the "unscrupulous people who produce fake
coupon vouchers", according to Mwenefumbo. Others receive more than
they are entitled to and Mutharika has warned that his government would
deal with "anyone who wants to derail my programme".


He has blamed the opposition for the problems rocking the distribution
process. But the opposition has denied any link either to fake coupon
vouchers or failure by the target groups to access subsidised seed and
fertiliser.


A number of people have been arrested and these include chiefs and
opposition party members. But despite some shortcomings within the
programme Malawians are now far better off in terms of food security
than they were in 2002 when more than six million people had no food.
And for thatthey have Mutharika to thank.

Malawi: Grain Subsidy Programme Bears Fruit

The turnaround in Malawi, from being a food deficit country to one
producing surplus grain and overcoming food shortages has demonstrated
that regional countries have the capacity to be food secure if they
apply the right policies.

The grain subsidy programme that was introduced in 2005 has seen the
government increasing the provision of maize seed and fertiliser to the
smallholder farmers by more than 75 percent.

As a result, Malawi has since 2005 trebled maize production from 1.2
million tonnes to 3.4 million tonnes in the 2007/2008 agricultural
season.

The government policy intervention -- a reintroduction of fertiliser
and seed subsidies that began in 1999 -- is profoundly supported by the
Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika, who doubles as Minister of
Agriculture.

Starting in 2005, the government distributed coupons to low-income
farmers to allow them to purchase two 50kg bags of fertiliser
equivalent to US$7, one-fifth the market price.

In addition, the government provided vouchers to buy seeds enough
for planting half an acre each. As a result, the average farmer's yield
increased to two tonnes per hectare from 0.8 tonnes in 2005.

In the 2007/2008 agricultural season, the subsidy programme cost the
government US$62 million or 6.5 percent of its total budget.

The programme was initially criticised by economists and
multilateral agencies who argued that the expansion of subsidies would
worsen the budget deficit and create distortions in the market.

But Malawi's recent successes in turning around the agriculture
sector and ensuring food security for the country has confounded
critics. In fact, the phenomenal increase in maize production has saved
the country a yearly budget of US$120 million that it had spent in 2005
importing food aid.

As highlighted by Malawi's Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Frank
Mwendifumbo, the important lesson for policy makers in the region is
that government subsidies are necessary for growth in agriculture. Such
an intervention is in line with the SADC Declaration on Agriculture and
Food Security that was adopted by SADC Member States in Tanzania

Among the medium to long term targets, the SADC leaders agreed to
ensure that all Member States progressively increase agricultural
finance allocation to at least 10 percent of national budgets within a
period of five years.

In the 2008/2009 agriculture season, Malawi plans to spend US$186
million in an ambitious farm input subsidy programme for 1.7 million
peasant farmers, agriculture authorities recently announced. sardc.net

UDF, NRP coalition future in fresh doubt by ANTHONY KASUNDA

Uncertainty surrounds the future of the
relationship between the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the New
Republican Party (NRP) over what stakes NRP leader Gwanda Chakuamba has
in the alliance.
The development, according to sources from both UDF
and NRP, has raised tension between the two key players in the
alliance, a situation which has seen Chakuamba recently not being in
public together with his UDF counterpart Bakili Muluzi.
But
Chakuamba, while acknowledging that the two sides have not yet agreed
on his position in the alliance, attributed his public no-show to his
bail conditions. He was arrested recently over remarks he made at a
rally in Nkhotakota
“We have not yet discussed anything but there
are still some consultations going on,” Chakuamba said when asked what
agreement was made on his position in the alliance.
He dismissed the
assertions that he has been boycotting UDF functions because the UDF
has not been clear on his future position in the alliance, saying
recently he has not been able to attend such functions because of his
bail conditions.
“My bail condition number one and five only allows
me to move from home to the office and back and if I want to go outside
those areas then I have to seek police permission. My lawyer has made
an application to lift that,” he said.
Asked whether he expects the
UDF to make him running mate to Muluzi and what will happen if that
would turn out not to be the case Chakuamba just said: “I don’t know
but there are some consultations still going on.”
However, the bail
conditions sourced from the Nkhotakota Magistrate Court, which granted
Chakuamba the bail, do not say NRP is barred from holding or addressing
any rally.
The first and second condition mentions K50,000 bail bond
not cash for the accused and K20,000 bail bond not cash for two
sureties while condition number three requires him to surrender his
passport and all travel documents to police.
The last two conditions
require him to be reporting to police twice a week on Fridays and
Tuesdays and that he should not leave his office or home without the
authority of police.
The NRP leader has not been present in all the
four public functions where Muluzi was present since his return from
the UK a month ago.
Chakuamba did not welcome Muluzi on his arrival
from the UK, did not attend late Mary Kaphwereza Banda’s burial which
the UDF chairman attended in Lilongwe and was also absent at Muluzi’s
two rallies in Zomba and Nyambadwe in Blantyre. His deputy Ken Zikhale
Ng’oma attended all but the last event.
UDF alliance spokesperson
Humphrey Mvula, while acknowledging that the position of Chakuamba was
not yet clear, also said the NRP leader’s recent actions have nothing
to do with Chakuamba being discontent with some aspects of the alliance.
“From
what I hear [from his lawyers] it is all to do with his bail
conditions. I hear that he is supposed not to hold any political rally
as part of the bail condition. With that I would personally not
encourage him to attend political rallies because at times politicians
can become overzealous during such gatherings,” he said.
Mvula said he has not seen the bail conditions himself and will only understand the situation after reading the conditions.
But
he said at the moment the issues to do with the alliance are being
looked at from two levels — an alliance working committee comprising
party officials and at leadership level involving all leaders of the
parties in the alliance.
“Some of those issues are handled at the
leadership forum and issues relating to leaders are information privy
only to the leadership of the parties. I would not know what is being
discussed,” he said.
Mvula, however, explained that all alliance
members are working based on a clear agreement which he said has some
of the elements derived from the agreement drawn when Chakuamba was
first drafted into government before President Bingu wa Mutharika broke
away from the UDF.
“As far as we are concerned there is no problem.
If Chakuamba wanted to stand on his own I don’t think he could have
wasted all his time advancing a UDF agenda and propagating Muluzi’s
come back,” he added.
UDF and NRP first had a clash over fielding of
parliamentary candidates after the UDF insisted that it will field some
candidates in the NRP stronghold of the Lower Shire especially where it
feels its candidates are strong.
Sources from both parties said
recently Chakuamba and his officials have been pressurising the UDF to
make its position clear on the position of their leader in the
alliance. Chakuamba is seen as the main key figure in the alliance
outside the UDF.
“The problem is that even Muluzi himself has never
confided in his colleague what position Chakuamba will have. That delay
is making us suspicious because at the end of the day if UDF decides to
do things to their own interest it will be too late for us as NRP,”
said one of the sources from the NRP.
The source said the NRP expects nothing less than a running mate for Chakuamba.
A
senior official in the UDF said Chakuamba’s absence during Muluzi
function was a sign of boycott and not the bail conditions as he was
putting it because he said before he started boycotting UDF activities
he raised the issue but the UDF told him that it was not yet time to
make any declaration since the party was still courting some more
players into the alliance.
“Our feeling as a party is that if we
make any declaration on our alliance partners it means we are shutting
the door for other potential partners who would want to join us because
then they will have nothing to bargain on,” said the source.

US proposes for parallel tally centre

American Ambassador to Malawi Peter Bodde has
suggested that donors should put up a parallel tally centre for vote
count in the May 19 polls.



The ambassador said this would help verify results.



But in a separate interview, Malawi Electoral Commission (Mec) urged
proponents of such an idea to write the election administrators.



Mec publicist Fegus Lipenga said such ideas could only be discussed if presented in writing.



Mec recently turned down a similar idea from the Malawi Electoral Support Network (Mesn).



Among the reasons given by Mec were that such structures would bring
confusion apart from the fact that only Mec was mandated to handle
elections in Malawi.



Mec advised Mesn to use their monitors to ensue credibility of the results.



Ambassador Bodde, however, said he was encouraged with the way Malawi was preparing for the elections.



“I am also happy that both President Mutharika and opposition leaders
said they would welcome international observers to monitor the
election,” he said.



US, one of the country’s major donors, said it was looking forward to a
free, fair and credible presidential and parliamentary election in
Malawi on May 19 and has since asked for a parallel donor-funded tally
centre.



Bodde’s comments come before the campaign window is officially opened
but major political parties have already started electioneering with
the opposition picking food shortage and high prices of fuel and other
commodities as the campaign issue.



The ruling DPP has picked the macro-economic stability and President
Bingu wa Mutharika’s development programmes, especially in the road
infrastructure sector, as the major issues.



But Bodde said as an American envoy to Malawi, he could not comment on
internal politics but emphasised that everything should be done to have
a free, fair and credible election whose outcome will be the will of
Malawians.



“I am very encouraged that the President told me personally that he is
committed to free and fair elections. I met the heads of various
political parties, they told me they too are of that view,” he said.



He described voting as a precious right, saying all Malawians have a responsibility to go and vote for leaders of their choice.



Mec has in the past two elections of 1999 and 2004 mounted tally
centres at Comesa Hall in Blantyre where all poll results were
forwarded and displayed.



In the recent elections in Zimbabwe, the civil societies had their own
tally centre apart from that of the country’s electoral body to ensure
credible results.



Last year, US gave Malawi a US$100 million aid package and this year, it is expected to roll out another US$100 million in aid.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! (from the Editorial)

We hope you all had a very succesful 2008. Looking forward we can only be hopeful for the future. 2009 looks bright despite the global financial crisis. Barack Obama will be the next President of the United States and with your help Bakili Muluzi will be denied the keys to the State House

The outcomes of this year will solely depend on our actions. In order to realize the Malawian dream we all seek, our actions this year will matter. Our destiny shall not be determined by another, but ourselves. This year we are up against the old who are stuck in their old ways. They will stop at nothing to reclaim what they think is rightly theirs. However Malawians are tired and craving for something new and greater, a government that serves the people. They are yearning for a leader who will tell them the truth, a leader who will not heap promises on the people without delivering on his promises, a leader who will lead the people with both vision and intergrity, an educated leader. As we look forward to the future, we cannot afford another ten years of Bakili Muluzi.

This election season, we should not leave any stones unturned in our quest to preserve democracy and ensure prosperity for the people of Malawi. Your efforts are required in this quest, we urge you to be more involved whether it is in your neighbourhood or in the village. By simply talking with your neighbours and relatives on the future of the country and which direction we should take, you will help each other bring the issues into perspective, healthy debates are always welcome.
We must also remember that registering alone is not enough, we need all the votes to succeed this year especially with the urban vote. With this in mind encourage your neighbours and relatives to turn up on Election Day to vote. Again we need all the votes out this year to help us make our statement loud and clear, we are the chosen generation to make this very important choice.

The battle will be epic, monumental and will not be easy, but with your help we will make the right decision for future generations by sending BAKILI MULUZI back to retirement where he belongs and this time, for good.


A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL

We are still looking for our eyes and ears for this blog this election season GET INVOLVED email us at antimuluzi@googlemail.com to get a pass to publish on this blog