Parliament has approved two major loan authorisation Bills worth a combined K126.7 billion, clearing the way for investments in the M1 and an expansive water and sanitation system in Jenda.
The financing includes a €38 million (about K79.4 billion) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and a $27 million (about K47.3 billion) loan from the Opec Fund for International Development.
Both Bills received cross-party support, with legislators emphasising the need for continuity and enhanced project oversight.
The approvals signal renewed national focus on infrastructure development that underpins trade, mobility, public health and long-term economic growth.
Moving the first Bill, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning, and Decentralisation Joseph Mwanamvekha said the K79.4 billion financing will support the rehabilitation of 347 kilometres across five critical segments of the M1, namely Karonga to Songwe, Kacheche to Chiweta, Jenda to Mzimba, Kasungu to Jenda and Kamuzu International Airport to Kasungu.
He said the works will address years of structural deterioration that have rendered some sections unsafe, introduce modern pavement reconstruction, climbing lanes in hilly terrain, climate-resilient bridges, and further see the widening, surface dressing, and improved drainage of the road.
Reading the Bill before Parliament yesterday, Mwanamvekha stressed the M1’s strategic role as the backbone of the North-South Corridor, which is part of a regional trade route linking Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and Durban in South Africa.
Malawi Congress Party (MCP) spokesperson in Parliament Peter Dimba welcomed the approval, noting that negotiations for the loan began under the MCP administration.
UTM Party spokesperson in the House Felix Njawala said the economic analysis shared with Parliament demonstrates that the M1 project has a positive net present value and an internal rate of return above typical public investment thresholds.
Parliament also passed the K47.3 billion Opec Fund loan, with Mwanamvekha, describing Jenda as a town that has grown “from a mere police roadblock into a thriving commercial community” yet still relies on an incomplete water system that exposes residents to waterborne diseases.
