Govt’s $35m maize from Tanzania ready for distribution
The 47693 metric tons of maize Malawi has bought from Tanzania valued at US$34 million is ready for distribution to hunger-stricken people in the country after the first batch of the consignment arrived on Thursday.
Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale said the arrival of the first batch of the consignment of 2,000 metric tons of maize at World Food Programme warehouses in Limbe, Blantyre is a milestone in its efforts to address the situation of hunger in this country.
He also said the arrival of the first batch underlined the government’s commitment to improve food security to vulnerable households, especially those affected by natural disasters.
Kawale, who was accompanied by Minister of Information and Digitisation Moses Kunkuyu, Department of Disaster and Preparedness of Malawi and WFP top officials, said World Bank through Malawi Food System and Resilience Project and Resilient Climate Response Project contributed the funding at US$30 million and US$5 million, respectively.
“This generous contribution is more than just food. It is a beacon of hope and dignity for families facing immense challenges. It is a reminder that, even in the darkest times, we are not alone,” he said.
The minister also assured that the distribution of the relief maize to 687,000 households translating to 3 million people will start immediately.
Kawale also commended the World Food Programme for making the initiative successful by handling the logistics to bring the maize home and store in their warehouses for distribution.
In his remarks, Minister of Information Kunkuyu, said there is enough maize for people to be given and enough for Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation to be restocked.
“As the President keep on saying, there are a number of measures that government has put in place to ensure food security and one of those is to procure maize from abroad,” he said.
Nkukuyu also appealed to beneficiaries against selling the relief maize to vendors.
WFP interim Country Director Simon Denhere said through the Ministry of Agriculture the organisation has bought maize and is transporting it to Malawi for distribution.
The relief maize will be distributed to vulnerable people to 15 districts across the country.
The World Bank report estimated that 5.7 million people are at risk of facing hunger during this farming season due to cyclones and drought induced by El Nino in the past three years.
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I still do not understand why Malawi 🇲🇼 should be behaving perennial hunger situations. Ministry of Agriculture should come up with a solution. For starters, give each EPA or ADD deadlines to draw Action Plans for exiting from their perennial hunger situations and monitor them. Every year hunger pangs is disgusting
This is very sad as far as the government of Malawi is concerned. What happened to strongly touted mega farms. Malawi is an Agriculture based economy. To buy maize from Tanzania is a shame. We are failling to feed ourselves.