Category: Business

Malawi’s president has announced a plan to help the country’s struggling economy recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan, which includes government-wide spending cuts, follows nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Malawi, one of Africa’s poorest nations.

President Lazarus Chakwera’s economic recovery plan was announced two days after Chakwera’s predecessor, Peter Mutharika, criticized the Chakwera administration for ruining the country’s economy.

It also follows a series of nationwide protests against the high cost of living, driven by inflation, which has reached 11%.

During his national address Tuesday evening, Chakwera acknowledged there are economic problems facing the country.

“Our economy is bleeding from four wounds at once. The first long term wound our economy is suffering from is its structural limitations, for ours is an agro-based economy that has a narrow production base,” Chakwera said.

He said as such any plan must help restructure the economy by stimulating sectors like mining, infrastructure development and manufacturing.

However, Chakwera said the main cause of the country’s economic slowdown is COVID-19.

“The third long-term wound our economy is bleeding from is the COVID-19 pandemic, which is now in its fourth wave of not only infecting swathes of the population, but also tearing into the very fabric of our economic development,” Chakwera said.

Since the onset of the pandemic last year, Malawi has registered over 60,000 cases and more than 2,300 deaths. Twice, the government has declared a national disaster, with accompanying restrictions of movement.

Chakwera said although the restrictions have saved lives, they have caused inevitable damage to livelihoods.

“Towards that end, the social economic plan I am announcing today, included interventions aimed at intensifying efforts aimed to vaccinate the population. So far only half a million people are fully vaccinated, which is less than 5% of the targeted 11 million people to reach herd immunity,” Chakwera said.

As part of the enforcement of the plan, Chakwera ordered government officials to emulate his example by reducing spending.

“I am already scaling my travel plan for the recovery period, so I expect every ministry under my administration to do the same,” he said.

Betchani Tchereni, a lecturer in economics at the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences, commends the plan but says it falls short on practical ways for Malawi to increase its export base.

“We must know that as long as we continue to be an importing country, our inflation is not going to go down at all. The cost of living is going either rise or be where it is now. Why? Because we’re not producing our own commodities. And if you look at this plan, it is not meant to trigger manufacturing,” Tchereni said.

Despite a government promise to modernize and industrialize the economy, nearly 80% of Malawians are employed in agriculture, according to a recent World Bank report.

Source: Voice of America

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• The proportion of households relying on purchase as the main source of food was 41.8 percent, which is 24.4 percentage points lower than the 66.2 percent in the same month of November last year. The proportion of households relying on purchase as the main source of food is higher than the 36.4 percent in the previous month of October 2021. The southern region recorded the highest proportion of households relying on purchase estimated at 57.3 percent, which is lower than the 76.0 percent same month last year but higher than the 50.8 percent in the previous month of October 2021.

• The proportion of households owning any livestock including poultry was 55.7 percent, which is 0.9 percentage points higher than the 54.8 percent recorded same month last year and is 1.1 percentage points lower than the 56.8 percent reported in the month of October 2021. The northern region continues to record the highest proportion of households owning livestock estimated at 79.8 percent, which is higher than the 74.3 percent reported same month last year and is similar to the 80.3 percent in the previous month of October 2021. The proportion of households reporting some suspected livestock diseases was 22.2 percent, which is higher than the 20.1 percent same month last year and is also higher than the 20.4 percent in the previous month of October 2021. The northern region recorded the highest proportion of households reporting some suspected livestock diseases estimated (22.9 percent down from 27.1 percent same month last year).

• The proportion of households involved in fishing related activities was 2.0 percent, which is 0.2 percentage points lower than the 2.2 percent reported in the same month last year and is also 0.2 percentage points lower than the 2.2 percent reported in the month of October 2021. The northern region recorded the highest proportion of households involved in fishing related activities estimated at 4.5 percent up from 3.1 percent same month last year and similar to the 4.6 percent reported in the previous month of October 2021. In households involved in fishing activities, the proportion of households reporting suspected fish diseases was 14.52 percent, which is lower than the 20.3 percent recorded same month last year but higher than the 13.2 percent recorded in the previous month of October 2021. The northern region recorded the highest proportion of households reporting suspected fish diseases (27.1 percent down from 32.5 percent same month last year but higher than the 25.0 percent in the previous month of October 2021).

• The average price of maize per kilogram in November 2021 was MK148.38, which is 22.4 percent lower than the MK191.16/kg recorded during the same month last year. The average maize prices per kg is higher than the MK147.64 recorded in the previous month of October 2021. The southern region continued to record the highest maize prices per kg estimated at MK172.11 down from MK212.68 in the month of November last year.

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

• The proportion of households relying on purchase as the main source of food was 43.4 percent, which is 23.4 percentage points lower than the 66.8 percent reported same time last year but higher than the 39.9 percent reported in the first half of November 2021. The southern region continued to record the highest proportion of households relying on purchase as the main source of food estimated at 55.5 percent, which is lower than the 76.3 percent reported during the same period last year. The proportion of households relying on purchase as the main source of food in the southern region is lower than the 57.8 percent recorded in the first half of November 2021.

• In households owning any type of livestock, the proportion of households reporting suspected livestock diseases was 17.1 percent, which is 4 percentage points lower than the 21.1 percent recorded during the same period last year and is lower than 20.2 percent recorded in the first half of November 2021. The southern region recorded the highest proportion of households reporting livestock diseases estimated at 22.5 percent up from 2.9 percent.

• The proportion of households involved in fishing related livelihoods activities was 2.0 percent, which is 0.1 percentage points lower than 2.1 percent reported during the same period last year and is also 0.1 percentage points higher than 1.9 percent reported in the first half of November 2021. The northern region recorded the highest proportion of households involved in fishing related activities (5.6 percent up from 3.2 percent). Households involved in fishing related activities reporting some suspected fish diseases was 22.6 percent, which is 5.4 percentage points higher than the 17.2 percent reported during the same period last year and is also 18.4 percentage points higher than the 4.2 percent reported in the first half of November 2021. The northern region reported the highest proportion of households reporting suspected fish diseases (40.6 percent). Lesions or ulcers, localized swelling and skin erosion or loss of scales were the fish disease reported.

• The average price of maize per kg was MK148.46, which is 21.5 percent lower than the MK189.14/kg recorded during the same time last year. The average maize price is slightly up from the MK147.00/kg reported in the first half of November 2021. The southern region continued to record the highest average maize prices per kg at MK174.30, which is 15.7 percent lower than the MK206.86/kg recorded same time last year.

• The average crop prices for selected crops per kg were MK742.56 up from MK689.07 for rice, MK893.50 up from MK798.82 for groundnuts, MK499.75 up from MK502.68 for Irish potatoes compared to average prices recorded during the same time last year.

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

COVID-19 poses real risks for the attainment of Malawi’s national development aspirations as espoused in the new long-term development Vision, Malawi 2063 (MW2063); as well as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In addition to declined economic activities and growth rates, COVID-19-related threats include the erosion of domestic institutional capacities; reversal of recent achievements in health and education; and reversal of trade and private sector investment streams, which had brightened in recent years. Further, social insecurity has heightened, with the evolving situation exposing various deficiencies in the healthcare system which need to be addressed urgently. Furthermore, with large numbers of job losses in the formal sector, the informal sector has ceased to play an effective role of absorbing shock for alternative livelihoods, as the latter has not been spared from the COVID-19 induced decline.

Within the context of international best practice, the Socio-Economic Recovery Plan (SERP) has been developed through an extensive evidence-based consultative process that drew from recent studies on the impact of COVID-19 and the spill-over effects. The consultative process included insights, data and information on the pandemic provided by state and non-state actors. Sectoral and other central Government experts identified the priorities for redress under the SERP. Accordingly, the SERP supports and aligns to the following existing frameworks and plans: (a) MW2063; (b) Malawi 2063 First 10-Year Implementation Plan (MIP-1); (c) UN Framework for The Immediate Socio- Economic Response to COVID-19; (d) National COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Plan; (e) Global World Health Organization’s Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan; and (f) UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The SERP also recognizes that recovery from COVID-19 will require collaborative and multi-dimensional efforts; coordinated action across local communities; civil society; private sector; micro, small and medium enterprises; informal sector; and national and local Government structures. This collaboration will facilitate recovery in the health sector and other severely affected sectors; and deal with the numerous socio- economic challenges encountered, while bearing in mind the specific needs and roles of women, youth, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups that bear the brunt of the compound effect of COVID-19.

Broadly, the aim of the SERP, which covers the period 2021-2023, is to enhance the capacity of Malawi and its people to effectively recover and build back better from the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; and facilitate the transition to the effective implementation and realization of its development aspirations as espoused under MW2063. As such, the SERP priorities intervetions within the MIP- 1, that would help accelerate the recovery. One key principle driving the SERP is front-loading of interventions (especially economic infrastructure) that have high probability of stimulating private sector investments capable of optimising production for local and export markets thereby creating jobs and stabilizing prices especially imported inflation on a sustainable basis.

Source: Government of Malawi

U.S. health authorities on Wednesday authorized the use of synthetic antibodies developed by AstraZeneca to prevent COVID-19 infections in people who react badly to vaccines.

It was the first time the Food and Drug Administration has given emergency authorization for such a purely preventative treatment.

The FDA warned the drug Evusheld is “not a substitute for vaccination in individuals for whom COVID-19 vaccination is recommended” and can only be authorized for people with weakened immune systems or those who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons, such a strong allergic reaction.

In those cases, the drug can be administered to people 12 and older.

Evusheld combines two types of synthetic antibodies (tixagevimab and cilgavimab), and is given as two intramuscular injections, one right after the other. These antibodies help the immune system fight off the virus by targeting its spike protein, which allows it to enter cells and infect them.

The FDA said that the treatment “may be effective for pre-exposure prevention for six months.”

It cannot be administered to someone who is already infected with the virus, the FDA said, although AstraZeneca is testing it for such treatment.

Side effects may include an allergic reaction, bleeding from the injection site, headache, and fatigue.

The FDA authorization was based on a clinical trial carried out on unvaccinated people older than 59, or with a chronic disease, or at high risk of infection.

The drug was given to 3,500 people while 1,700 received a placebo. The trial showed that the treatment cut the risk of developing COVID-19 by 77%.

Two cocktails of antibodies, made by Regeneron and Eli Lilly, are currently authorized for prevention of infection in the United States, but only in people who have been exposed to the virus shortly before, or who have a strong chance of being exposed, such as employees of retirement homes or prisons.

In addition to being immunocompromised or unvaccinated, these people must also be at high risk of developing a severe case of the disease.

Source: Voice of America

 

– In 2019, Tropical Cyclones Idai and Kenneth devastated the Southern African region. Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe were the hardest hit as they bore the heaviest brunt with fatalities, damages and destruction of property, settlements, energy infrastructure, agricultural crops, livestock, forestry, fisheries and wildlife caused by the intense flooding and severe winds associated with the Cyclones.

This week in the Malawian capital of Lilongwe, the ACPC is organising a workshop to validate a crop capability mapping tool developed to enhance the forecasting capacities of relevant sectors in the three countries. Among the core purposes of the validation workshop is incorporating input from key stakeholders in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe on how the tool can be strengthened and packaged for uptake and use by stakeholders.

The devastation wrought on the three countries in the eye of the storm prompted high-level intervention to prepare for disasters and forestall livelihood losses in future. The response saw the continent’s lead climate think-tank, the African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) approached to lead in preparing the affected countries to facilitate the uptake of an effective and comprehensive multi-hazard early warning early action system.

According to Dr James Murombedzi who heads the ACPC, the cyclones that pummelled the region triggered the convening of a “Building Back Better” workshop in late 2019 in concert with the governments of Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe with a view to assist them to integrate climate information services in their reconstruction plans. “The core outcome of the Building Back Better workshop was a request to ACPC to develop a study to demonstrate how investments in climate information services in the agriculture sector could contribute to building resilience of the sector to extreme, high impact climate events.” Murombedzi recalls.

The ACPC implemented the request and successfully demonstrated the Socio-Economic Benefits (SEB) of Climate Information Services to Disaster Risk Reduction. According to Murombedzi, ACPC commissioned a study to extend this model from the disaster risk reduction sector (DRR) to agriculture, focusing on Zimbabwe, with the intention of replicating the intensive studies to Malawi and Mozambique. Murombedzi says the study culminated in a report titled “Socio-Economic Benefits of Climate Information Services for Zimbabwe Agriculture” which explored how the southern African country can benefit from an early warning and early action system based on the available climate information services.

“The outcomes of the ‘Building Back Better’ reconstruction workshop followed by the Zimbabwean case study offered useful insights that compelled the ACPC to launch a second phase evidence-based study seeking to develop seasonal crop capability maps for the agriculture sectors of Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe.” Murombedzi says. “This initiative has now developed a tool for agriculture policy makers in the three countries to translate the seasonal and sub-seasonal forecasts, which tend to be cast in very general terms, into specific maps detailing the implications for crop production in specific agro-ecological zones of their countries.”

The three-day Lilongwe workshop amalgamates the milestones since 2019 and combines with the ACPC-led study which seeks to enhance climate forecasting capacities through a training programme in the select countries to better inform adaptation and resilience in agriculture and other climate sensitive sectors.

Mr Murombedzi says the Lilongwe validation workshop signifies the completion of the study and is organised to validate the study’s findings and make recommendations for uptake and use of the crop capability modelling tool by policy makers at all levels.

Mr Frank Rutabingwa of the ACPC acknowledges that the aims of the study were geared towards improving the forecasting and information interpretation capacities of policymakers and user communities for strategic provisioning of appropriate inputs to the agriculture and food security sectors.

“Despite rapid technological progress in the generation of climate information services, much of the weather and agro-meteorological information is not used by small-holder farmers. There is need to develop a series of simple and robust scientific tools, methods, and services that can guide planning and policy to better understand climate impacts on food security and livelihoods.” Rutabingwa says. “The interface between scientists who generate products and end-users is essential for achieving optimum agricultural productivity on seasonal and long-term basis. Thus, climate information services in agriculture needs to integrate feedback and inputs from agricultural support services, institutions, suppliers, local cooperatives or community-based organizations in order to help farmers to make practical, feasible and relevant decisions.”

According to Rutabingwa embedded goals include recommendations on enhancing the capacity for improved production, better access and sustainable operations for climate information service as well as the development of a methodology for predicting crop capability in the various agro-ecological and rainfall zones in order to enrich agricultural productivity and food security.

The Lilongwe workshop continues ACPC’s core objective of cementing climate information services in the continent’s agriculture sector, with the aim of providing a full range of advisories regarding climate and its impacts on crops, livestock, fisheries and management practices to build resilience. ACPC studies show that well-tailored information assists stakeholders in making management decisions to reduce the risks and benefit from opportunities available in a changing climate.

 

 

Source: UN Economic Commission for Africa