President Lazarus Chakwera has faulted the 40 percent devaluation of the kwacha in 2023, saying it did not have the desired impact.
He said it in part contributed to the soaring debt levels, which currently stand at K16.19 trillion.
He said this yesterday in response to a question from a participant in the State of the Nation Address (Sona) town hall meeting for youth in Mzuzu.
The participant, Matthew Botha, asked Chakwera what he is doing to eliminate the country’s dependency and appetite for borrowing, noting that it is the country’s youth that will pay back the loans in the future.
In response, Chakwera admitted that during the 2025/26 National Budget formulation, the country needed to realise where it would get funding for development projects while stressing borrowing for production and not consumption.
He said: “Let us not look at the debt as a choking mechanism. The debt we are paying back today is the debt we inherited. I have been going around countries asking for restructuring of this debt.
“They told us to devalue our currency and because we are not a producing nation, that devaluation did not yield positive results. That debt has now tripled.”
On the rising prices of goods and services, Chakwera said the country’s market economy has registered positive change within weeks that he has made certain pronouncements.
He was responding to a question from participants on what his government is doing to address the prevailing high cost of living.
Said Chakwera: “I was telling some people that because of our liberalised economy, others have used loopholes in the law to really oppress their fellow Malawians.”
He blamed the skyrocketed prices of goods and services on lawlessness despite having competition and fair trading laws in place.
Commenting on the President’s Facebook page, one youth following the event questioned if the Chakwera government will complete the construction of Mzuzu Youth Centre.
In response, Chakwera said he noted that those building the youth centre had left the site, but indicated that funds have been allocated and that the government is committed to completing the structure.
The next youth engagement will be in Mangochi under the same theme “Sona for the Youth: Our stake in taking development forward.”
