RBM provides $50m towards fuel stabilization for the next 3 months
Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) has provided US$50 million towards the importation of fuel to cover the next three months. This will help in stabilizing fuel supply in Malawi for the next three months.
RBM Governor Wilson Banda made the revelation when he appeared before the Parliamentary Committee for Natural Resources and Climate Change on Tuesday in Lilongwe.
He said the bank has allocated $25 million for the first quarter starting January 2023.
“We are supporting the imports so that there should be enough fuel supply in the country,” he said.
Banda said the commercial banks will commit $25 million to make $50 million, which will be enough for fuel supply.
On average, he said, Malawi uses $1million fuel per day.
He expressed optimism that after the first quarter, the country will have enough foreign exchange from tobacco exports which starts around March.
Banda projected that the year 2023 looks promising in terms of fuel supply unlike the past 2022 which had a lot of challenges as the country experienced a situation where fuel stocks were very low.
Banda said 2023 the country expects a better season as the rains have started on a good note.
“Apart from tobacco we expect other cash crops to perform better than they did last year,” he said, adding that the country is making progress with international institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank programmes.
He said a combination of exports and international institutions factors will give the country enough foreign currency.
Chairperson for Natural Resources and Climate Change Welani Chilenga expressed delight with the progress the central bank has made over fuel supply.
“We have been assured that there will be fuel supply in these three months which is a positive development,” he said.
Chilenga said that there is hope that beyond the mentioned period, the government would find other sources to make sure there are no fuel supply interruptions.
He however bemoaned government delays for not tapping into natural resources like mines to have the needed foreign currency.
“Government is not serious enough to generate our own forex through mining companies which are already on the ground expected to roll out the activities,” he said.
Chilenga said the government should move in quickly to give Mining Development Agreements (MDA) to mining companies in order for them to bring in more foreign currency.
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