Fertiliser Association warns of AIP delay

Fertiliser Association of Malawi (FAM) has warned of another delay in the implementation of the 2024/25 Affordable Inputs Programme (AIP) should the process of ordering fertiliser be delayed further.

FAM executive administrator Mbawaka Phiri in an interview on Thursday said no orders for fertiliser importation have been placed yet as companies are waiting for results of prequalification of suppliers.

She said faster finalisation of the process on the part of government would allow for better planning for orders by companies which import and supply AIP fertiliser.

Said Phiri: “It will likely mean fertilisers will only reach the country in November. There is a lead time of 3 to 4 months for the importation of fertilisers into Malawi.”

She, however, said if any imports are being made by suppliers at present, it would only be for fertilisers which they want to sell commercially.

But in a brief response, Ministry of Agriculture Principal Secretary Dickxie Kampani said there was progress on the screening for fertiliser suppliers but could not comment on the concerns raised by FAM.

“There is progress in the process. With the tragedy that has befallen the country, let me talk to you next week,” he said.

Companies generally issue their orders by June or July to allow for the three to four months needed for importation, according to FAM.

L a s t month, t h e association said foreign exchange challenges have left the country with a 350 000 metric tonnes (MT) shortfall.

FAM revealed Malawi’s in-country fertiliser stocks stood at 50 000MT but said it was expected that most of the available fertiliser would be used during the winter-cropping season, with some to be used later this year during the rainy season.

After missing two d e a d l i n e s f o r A I P implementation, Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale in January this year said the 2023/24 programme would be open-ended as the goal was to reach all beneficiaries with inputs.

But in February 2023, President Lazarus Chakwera had promised a timely AIP and further directed that the procurement processes should be done by the end of June 2023 so that people start accessing inputs in early July 2023.

During the launch of the 2023/24 AIP on October 20, Chakwera gave the ministry 40 days to implement the programme, but at the expiry of the deadline, the ministry had reached 46 percent of the beneficiaries, who mostly accessed only a bag of NPK.