Malawi's economic potential was a hot topic at the Malawi Investment Summit 2023, which attracted high-level delegates, economic stakeholders, and experts, including President Lazarus Chakwera.
Hosted in Lilongwe, the summit had the support of influential multinational companies such as Philip Morris International Inc. and Pyxus Agriculture Malawi Ltd, attracting business leaders, investors, and institutions from 10 different countries.
Meanwhile, the forum was also hosted in Johannesburg in collaboration with Malawi's diplomatic mission to South Africa, where Malawian minister of trade and industry, Simplex Chithyola Banda, represented President Chakwera.
One of the summit's major highlights came from South Africa-based Malawian economist Chifipa Mhango, who applauded Malawi's potential for investors to take advantage of establishing their businesses in Malawi's agriculture, mining, and tourism sectors.
"Malawi has the potential of becoming Africa's food basket if potential investors come and invest in the agriculture sector," Mhango was quoted saying.
The economist further emphasized that attracting investors opens up opportunities for Malawi to spearhead its development agenda.
Many speakers at the summit highlighted opportunities in Malawi's agriculture sector, stressing the need for urgent government consultation with the private sector. They discussed ways to grow exports, diversify crops, reduce input costs impeding farmers' productivity, close knowledge gaps, and create more modern value chains.
Malawi's minister of agriculture, Samuel Kawale, shared the government's key initiatives to improve agricultural productivity, such as reforming the Affordable Inputs Program (AIP) and restructuring the government-owned Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (ADMARC) and the Mega-farms project.
During the two-day forum, President Chakwera reiterated Malawi's determination to tackle obstacles to production, international investment, and growth, such as governance dysfunctions and external shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic and cyclones Ana, Gombe, and Freddy.
The head of state pointed out that the government remains optimistic about the future and is determined to position Malawi as the "best partner in investment" on the African continent.