Alliance for speedy approval of Alcohol Policy

Malawi Alcohol Policy Alliance (Mapa) has asked government to fast-track approval of the Alcohol Policy if the country is to curb alcohol-related malpractices.

Speaking during a Mapa stakeholders meeting in Mzuzu on Tuesday, Mapa (North) chairperson Kinnear Mlowoka said the policy has been gathering dust for years and it is high time government approved the draft.

He said banning of sachets alone cannot bring sanity in the country as traders have devised ways of beating the system by packing liquor in small bottles that the youth and other low income earners can still afford.

Mlowoka said if the policy is to be approved, packaging of alcohol will be limited to not less than 300 millilitres and will have to be packed in glass bottles.

Mzuzu City mayor William Mkandawire said there is need for proper enforcement to bring sanity in the liquor business.

Minister of Information, Tourism and Culture Kondwani Nankhumwa noted Mapa’s call for policy regulation.

He said government will take the issue as a matter of urgency to avoid complications in enforcement.