President Lazarus Chakwera has said government is committed to promoting youth development as evidenced by allocation of significant resources to youth programmes in the 2025/2026 National Budget.
He was speaking at Kamuzu Palace on Saturday during the swearing-in ceremony of new Cabinet appointees, Minister of Labour Peter Dimba and Deputy Minister of Transport Baba Steven Malondera, whom he said can speak for the youth of this nation as they are both millennials.
The President observed that the 2025/26 National Budget presented in Parliament on Friday was a product of wide consultations that included voices of the youth, which has seen the Ministry of Youth being allocated over K30 billion, in addition to other resources in various sectors that will benefit the youth.
Said Chakwera: “We have increased the allocation of resources to those critical sectors where our youth say they want to be supported, including agriculture, which has been allocated K693 billion; tourism and mining, which have been allocated over K28 billion cumulatively; trade, which supports youth entrepreneurs, has been allocated K14 billion.
“Crucially, education and health, which are tasked with investing in the health and capacity of our youth, have been allocated K2 trillion.
Chakwera also highlighted the recently initiated State of the Nation Address (Sona) for the youth events that have already happened in Lilongwe and Blantyre, with the next one happening in Mzuzu this week.
In an interview yesterday, Youth and Society executive director Charles Kajoloweka said the budget has attempted to respond to some areas of concern by the youth.
He pointed out the K2 billion allocation to the Youth Innovation Fund, increase in graduate internship programme allowance from K80 000 to K150 000 and opportunities under the National Economic Empowerment Fund, among others, as being crucial to youth empowerment.
Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Simplex Chithyola Banda on Friday presented the 2025/2026 National Budget estimated at K8.05 trillion.
