Chakwera meet players in tobacco industry, challenges them to put ‘egos aside’
President Lazarus Chakwera has appealed to players in the tobacco industry to put their egos aside and work on finding solutions to ensure that tobacco remains profitable to everyone including the local farmers.
Chakwera expressed his sentiments today when he met Tobacco Processors Association and Ministry of Agriculture officials at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe.
In his speech, the Malawi leader advised the gathering to maintain sanity in the industry, by developing quick solutions everytime they are faced with challenges.
“Whenever faced with challenges, lets handle them quickly. Let us continue the engagement, the collaboration and avoid putting spanners in the works,” he said.
Chakwera appealed to tobacco buyers to ensure that farmers reap the rewards of their hard work.
On this note, President Chakwera urged tobacco farmers to do the right thing in order to get the best from buyers.
“We can’t continue producing low quality leaf and then expect to get the best from buyers. There is no need for the president standing on the podium to castigate anybody. We just have to do the right thing,” he said.
He also challenged the industry players to ask themselves why the country continues to struggle with forex issues, even when the tobacco season is over.
“We talk of Tobacco as a forex earner, but after the season is over, you don’t see the forex,” said the president.
Minister of Agriculture, Sam Kawale assured the gathering that his ministry is working around the clock to deal with illegal cross – border trading of Tobacco.
Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Tobacco Commission, Evans Chilumpha, praised the president for creating a cordial working relationship in the industry, due to his open-door policy.
“We thank you for the conducive environment that you have created in the Tobacco industry,” he said.
Chilumpha hailed President Chakwera for assenting to the Tobacco Industry Act, saying the move will go a long way in resolving some of the sticky issues in the industry.
Limbani Kakhome, Chairperson of Tobacco Processors Association asked government to intensify security to deal with illegal cross boarder Tobacco trading.
He also asked government to intensify efforts to ensure that people who do not grow tobacco are barred from participating in the business.
“Let me also ask government to control over supply of the crop on the market to avoid price crash,” he emphasized.
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