MALAWI NEWS ONLINE #19
Africa_news Network
MALAWI NEWS ONLINE/MALAWI NEWS ONLINE/MALAWI NEWS ONLINE
A fortnightly update of news from Malawi
Edition No: 19 6 November 1996
MALAWI NEWS ONLINE is written by Malawian journalists in Malawi and brings
you the news from their point of view. It is assembled and edited in Denmark
by South Africa Contact, the former anti-apartheid movement, publishers of
i'Afrika, a quarterly magazine on Southern Africa.
The fortnightly news updates from Malawi are provided by our established
network of journalists in Southern Africa. They will be followed, in the not
too distant future, by individual news updates covering other Southern
African countries, ZAMBIA NEWS ONLINE being the latest.
MALAWI NEWS ONLINE is brought to you by a co-operation between South Africa
Contact and Inform, the leading alternative information network in Denmark.
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In this edition:
Feature: TOBACCO BUYERS THREATEN TO DUMP MALAWI LEAF
Articles:
1. MP GIVES VERBAL BASHING TO PRESIDENT
2. THREE KILLED IN AMBUSH
3. MYSTERY SURROUNDS SOURCE OF MONEY
4. TRIBUNAL ACCUSED OF FAVOURITISM
5. ELEVEN POLITICAL PARTIES FORM COUNCIL
6. TRIBUNAL COFFERS DRY UP
7. DRUGS PRICES LIKELY TO DROP
8. CHILDREN DIE IN MEASLES OUTBREAK
9. PARLIAMENT ACCUSED OF BLOCKING 8000 JOBS
Feature: TOBACCO BUYERS THREATEN TO DUMP MALAWI LEAF
As the war rages on between tobacco growers largely under the umbrella of the
Tobacco Association of Malawi (Tama) on the one hand, and the government and
Tobacco Control Commission on the other over intermediate buyers, Malawi's
main tobacco buyers have threatened to stop buying the country's tobacco
because they are dissatisfied over the low volumes produced. In spite of an
increase in volumes this year, international buyers have voiced concern that
for several years now, Malawi has failed to meet their desired threshold.
Tobacco sales this year registered an average 18.4% increase over last year's
production due to a mix of factors among them higher volumes and better
quality. The crop, dubbed Malawi's green gold, raked in a handsome
K3,553,620,000 ($236,908,000) in 1996, which was K552,285,000 over last
year's production. The lowest hit were burley, which dropped from
$190,228,000 in 1996 to $149,814,000 in 1995, flue-cured ($34,959,000) which
went down by $2,479,000 over last year's volumes and Northern Darkfired
($9,486,000 in 1996) from $12,730,000 in 1995.
Prices also varied with some leaf fetching higher prices per kilogram than
others. In spite of the lower volumes, Fluecured was the most highly priced
at an average of $2.29/kg ($1.85 last year), Burley gained by an average
$0.13/kg over last year, while Northern Darkfired and Southern Darkfired got
stuck at the same $1.70/kg. Sun Air on the other hand took a leap by
$0.40/kg.
Data was not immediately available from the Tobacco Control Commission to
compare with prices in other countries such as Zimbabwe. Tama's Executive
Secretary, Dr. Gabert Thyangathyanga, an optimist through and through, says
his organisation is poised to fight and eliminate intermediate buyers (IBs)
until the last soldier is gone."IBs are thieves. They connive with tenants to
steal from the farmers," charges Thyangathyanga. Intermediate buying, for a
very long time a monopoly of the government-owned Agricultural Development
and Marketing Corporation (Admarc), which had the sole prerogative of
controlling prices, was introduced on the behest of the International
Monetary Fund under the economic liberalisation policy.
The system is aimed at achieving equitable pricing of the crop to enable the
tenants and the smallholder farmers, who were recently also allowed to grow
burley and who could not hitherto benefit from the highly priced crops
because they were limited to one buyer, that is Admarc, irrespective of the
price the firm offered. There are now 3,000 intermediate buyers. However,
Thyangathyanga says the system was imposed on the farmers overnight and
without their say so and is aimed at destroying the tobacco industry, an evil
he says his organisation will fight to the end.
Tobacco Control Commission General Manager Dr. Godfrey Chapola says his firm
as a regulatory body only implements policy and does not take sides. He says
government took the decision in the national interest, but the aim was not to
damage the tobacco industry as claimed by Tama. "That would be suicidal.
Dissatisfaction in a normal setting is normal. What is important is economic
development and equitable distribution of income," says Chapola.
Independent analysts within the commission say government may lose the battle
to Tama on IBs because of its unsteady representation during meetings. They
argue that the growers would like to keep IBs out the system, not because
they are thieves as Thyangathyanga alleges, but because the IBs offer more
competitive buying prices to tenants and thereby reduce the farmers' chances
of ever exploiting the tenants. "With IBs around, farmers can no longer cheat
the tenants on prices because they will simply sell their tobacco to the
IBs," one analyst said. With this competition, tenants are now able to sell
their tobacco at as much as K12 to K15/kg and they are at liberty to sell or
not sell to their masters.
On low volumes of tobacco, Chapola says redress lies in putting in place an
equitable pricing system, facilitating access by farmers to resources, and
tied to the first two - opening up the industry in order for more people to
grow the crop. The analysts say many growers have over the years abandoned
Fluecured and Northern-Darkfired because of two reasons: the poor price for
the crops, whose price has only changed by a meagre 50 US cents over the ten
years since 1988. This has obviously made the crop unattractive. The other
problem is the shortage of the wood fuel the two types of tobacco require for
curing. They say the problem is compounded by the eucalyptus in blue-gum
species, one of the fast maturing types of trees which is not suitable for
curing.
In the 1995/96 season, Malawi only managed to produce 115 million kg out of
the 120 million that the buyers requested. Meanwhile, Chapola says the
commission will only issue realistic and manageable quotas to growers and the
total quotas to be issued will match the country's demand. Other analysts in
the commission say to beat the 130 million kg that buyers have requested
during the 1996/97 year, the commission will have to issue quotas for up to
200 million kg.
Articles:
1. MP GIVES VERBAL BASHING TO PRESIDENT
Opposition deputy for Karonga South, Kamunga Mwafulilwa, on October 27 took a
swipe at President Bakili Muluzi for failing to install electricity into
people's houses and public social facilities in his area in keeping with his
promises.
In his address to the gathering at the commissioning of Wovwe
mini-hydroelectric power station in Karonga, the Aford deputy told the
president that he had not connected power to hospitals and schools in the
area as he had earlier promised. Muluki had told the people in the area that
he would not commission the power station until he had connected all the
major public utilities with power in the area.
The MP also accused the ruling party of trying to gain political mileage of a
project that had been implemented by the previous regime. After speaking in
the vernacular, angry UDF officials had to grab the microphone from
Mwafurilwa when he wanted to translate what he had said in Tumbuka into
English for the benefit of the Germans who were present at the function. The
project was funded by Germany. A visibly angry Muluzi called on the MP to
respect him saying his remarks were uncalled for.
2. THREE KILLED IN AMBUSH
Four unidentified gunmen on October 27 shot dead three people, including a
woman, when they ambushed a Chibuku Brewery van in Nkhata-Bay, northern
Malawi. Police said the ambushers were apparently after cash. It is believed
the victims where unauthorised passengers.
3. MYSTERY SURROUNDS SOURCE OF MONEY
Nobody in the UDF government wants to disclose the source of a K70 million
fund that government has allocated to the Youth Loan Scheme. President Muluzi
launched the scheme in August, but fell short of disclosing the source of the
money as was expected of him.
Both Muluzi's economic advisor Kalonga Stambuli and Principal Secretary for
Youth, whose ministry will oversee the implementation of the project, said
they were ignorant of where the money came from apart from merely saying that
it was a grant.
4. TRIBUNAL ACCUSED OF FAVOURITISM
Over 900 people from Mangochi, south Malawi who were victimised by the former
regime and now want compensation, have accused the National Compensation
Tribunal of favouring certain people in processing claims for compensation.
Cyril Siliya, spokesman for the people, most of them from Moto village, home
of the late Masauko Chipembere who rebelled against Dr Banda during a 1964
cabinet crisis, said there were a lot of irregularities in sums of money paid
out to victims, with some getting more than others.
He said while some people with political connections got hefty sums of money
of up to K400,000, none of the victims from his district had been given more
than K20,000. However, legal assessor and spokesman for the tribunal Viva
Nyimba, said the payments being made now were only temporary and that the
victims would be given real compensation when the tribunal had assessed the
claims.
5. ELEVEN POLITICAL PARTIES FORM COUNCIL
Eleven political parties, most of which fought together with the ruling UDF
under the Common Electoral Group, have formed a united council to enable them
to speak with a common voice.
The formation of the group comes in the wake of growing dissatisfaction by
the parties who feel the UDF has abandoned them inspite of their vital
contribution in the fight for democracy.
The parties claim that the UDF is now eating the spoils of that fight alone,
having completely forgotten the rest of the parties in the CEG.
6. TRIBUNAL COFFERS DRY UP
Funds for paying victims of Dr Banda's 30 year autocratic rule dried up end
of October, dashing the hopes of thousands of people who had submitted claims
for an early compensation. The new government set up the tribunal in 1995 to
investigate claims by victims and compensate them for the victimisation.
For 1995/96, the tribunal had requested K100 million (6.6m) but was only
given 25% of that amount. Tribunal spokesman Viva Nyimba, confirming that
hundreds of victims are being turned back empty-handed because there were no
funds to pay them said, however, there was no need for anxiety as the
government would soon replenish the coffers.
7. DRUGS PRICES LIKELY TO DROP
The price of drugs, which today is very prohibitive even if one were on a
medical scheme, is likely to fall following recommendations that a special
committee set up to probe the high prices for drugs in the country has
recommended to government.
The committee comprising representatives from the health and finance
ministries and pharmacy and poisons board identified surtax and customs duty
as the main cause for the high prices for drugs in the country. Surtax ad
customs duty currently stand at 20% and 10%, respectively.
8. CHILDREN DIE IN MEASLES OUTBREAK
Nine children have died of measles in Mulanje, south Malawi during the past
two months prompting health workers to set up a vaccination campaign.
District Primary Health Officer in Mulanje, Veronica Limwado, described the
situation as serious but said it was gradually calming down.
Five deaths occurred in September while the other four were recorded in
October, out of over 131 cases reported in July. Officials said they are
stepping up the vaccination targeting a population of 5,000 children aged
between six months to 15 years.
9. PARLIAMENT ACCUSED OF BLOCKING 8000 JOBS
Presidential Economic Advisor, Kalonga Stambuli is deadsure that a whopping
8000 jobs are out there in the informal sector waiting to be grabbed - if
only the stalled parliament convened to amend the Customs and Taxation Act.
This bill, once amended, argues Stambuli, would usher in handsome investments
to the exporting industry. He said that "it would provide incentives that
would make this landlocked country competitive to foreign investors".
Stambuli, who thinks it is the opposition who are in the wrong for the
failure of parliament to convene says they (the opposition) might think they
are punishing the president by boycotting parliament, "but it's the ordinary
man who is now suffering." MCP and Aford are boycotting parliament in
reaction against the president's appointment of cabinet ministers from the
two parties without their consent which they view as being calculated at
weakening them.
Nebert Nyirenda, Investment Promotion Manager at Malawi Investment Promotion
Agency (Mipa), says his organisation is looking forward to the Finance
Minister - who has been studying the recommendations - tabling the bill
before the house anytime it convenes. "We were given a picture that if all
goes well it (the bill) would be tabled in parliament. It is expected that if
the bill was passed, investments would by March next year have created the
8,000 jobs for unskilled labour.
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