President Lazarus Chakwera has left Malawians in the dark on the status of the government-to-government (G2G) fuel procurement arrangement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after skipping it in his State of the Nation Address (Sona).
In a November 27 2024 national address, the President said he would provide finer details on the G2G fuel deal in his Sona in February this year.
Said Chakwera at the time: “The UAE President will be sending a team here next month [January 2025] to finalise the technical aspects of the arrangement, which I will update you on during my State of the Nation Address [in Parliament] in February.”
But on Friday, during the opening of the 51st Session of Parliament, which is the Budget Meeting, the President did not make any mention of the deal.
Instead, he talked about how his administration intended to enhance fuel security by doubling the fuel storage capacity from 60 million to 120 million litres, with feasibility studies and procurement processes for new reserves in Blantyre, Lilongwe, and Mzuzu already underway.
He said: “And before the year had ended, there came the pain caused by my decision to change Malawi’s procurement laws and policies towards a government-to-government arrangement that now disadvantages those who have been benefiting from fuel and fertiliser procurements in the open tender system just as there are many who are not happy with my recent Executive order requiring those who receive forex from abroad to pass it through the Reserve Bank of Malawi where it can no longer be traded on the criminal black market.”
But in an interview yesterday, Consumers Association of Malawi executive director, John Kapito said Malawians deserved an update on the specifics of the UAE deal and should be told steps being undertaken to have it finalised.
He said: “What we needed is a complete explanation on the UAE G2G arrangement. Most of the issues we are talking about are simple, but the challenge is that the President is not being assisted.
“Most officials in government are letting the President down. We need a comprehensive report on what should be expected moving forward.”
Minister of Energy Ibrahim Matola could not be reached for comment yesterday, but he was quoted in The Nation of January 17 2025 as having no knowledge on the technical team from Abu Dhabi in the UAE.
“I don’t know anything about the Abu Dhabi team,” he said as he witnesses the arrival of the first tankers carrying the G2G fuel at Songwe border in Karonga.
The minister said Capital Hill invited expressions of interest from refinery countries, including Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Late last year, government procured 40 000 metric tonnes (about 51.5 million litres) of a combined cargo of diesel and petrol from Abu Dhabi, UAE under the Kenyan government bilateral arrangement. The fuel is at the port of Tanga in Tanzania from where it is being hauled into Malawi.
Transporters Association of Malawi spokesperson Frank Banda said about 100 trucks were stuck in Tanzania for two weeks and only got released last Saturday.
Malawi is reeling under a food crisis worsened by weather-induced disasters that reduced harvest and fuel shortage attributed to low foreign exchange reserves due to dwindling export earnings.
Malawi needs $600 million annually to bring in fuel, but generates just around $1 billion in forex every year. In total, the country needs $3 billion to meet its import requirements.
