President Lazarus Chakwera has impressed upon United Arab Emirates (UAE) leader Sheik Mohamed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan on the need for that country to help Malawi end her persistent erratic fuel supply.
The President, who left the country last week Thursday for the UAE, took to his Facebook page to highlight how he has been trying to engage authorities in that country on the fuel situation in Malawi, but also how the government-to-government system may help the situation.
Said the President: “I have relentlessly continued to engage the Government of the United Arab Emirates [UAE] on issues of bilateral importance, chief among them is the security of fuel supply following the transition to a government-to-government (G2G) arrangement.
“I conveyed to him the dysfunctions of Malawi’s erratic fuel supply under the open tender procurement system and he has expressed deep understanding and solidarity about the negative ripple effects this has had across the entire economy for decades.”
Chakwera said he was encouraged with the keen interest that the UAE leader has taken in this matter to ensure that the UAE remains an integral part of Malawi’s solutions to its fuel insecurity.
Last Friday, Chakwera also met UAE’s Minister of Investment and group chief executive officer of Abu Dhabi Holdings, Mohamed Hasan Alsuwaidi, where he asked that government to create a platform which allows Malawi to establish reliable fuel supply, as well as explore opportunities for investment in fuel refineries in the country.
The President is in UAE on the invitation of that country’s leadership to, among other things, kick start the engagement in G-2-G agreements for the procurement of petroleum products.
On Tuesday, Parliament passed, amid reservations from the opposition, the Liquid Fuels and Gas (Production and Supply) Act (Amendment) Bill to facilitate the transition from open tender to government-to-government procurement of fuel.
The new law will make operational President Lazarus Chakwera’s directive to transition from the open tender system to a G-to-G procurement process and gives the Minister of Energy the power to nominate an agent or State entity to import fuel without the oversight prescribed in the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets (PPDA) Act of 2017.
Earlier, Energy Minister Ibrahim Matola said the system should be fully operational by March 2025, but in the meantime, government is negotiating an emergency G-to-G supply of fuel to cover the intervening period.
