Malawi signs K117bn World Bank financing agreements

Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development has signed a $160 million (K117 billion) finance agrements with World Bank to enhance the Shire Valley Transformation Programme and Agriculture Commercialisation Project.

Speaking during the signing ceremony on Friday in Lilongwe, World Bank country director for Tanzania, Malawi, Burundi and Somalia Bella Bird said they are committed to helping boost various sectors of agriculture in some African countries.

“Word Bank is passionate about increasing the diversity of products and financing in agricultural sectors in Africa, including Malawi,” she said.

Bird said the Bretton Wood institution is focused on extending irrigation farming to raise productivity among small-scale famers in the Shire Valley.

“We have put a lot of money aside to be used for the two major projects and this is the latest project that World Bank has ever prepared in Malawi for the first time,” she said.

Bird said 300 farming cooperatives in the country will benefit from the project, observing that this would ease access to international markets by the farmers.

In his remarks, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Goodall Gondwe thanked the World Bank for helping the country with transformation and commercialisation projects.

“World Bank has done a great thing as the Government of Malawi is working on transforming projects in different sectors in the country,” he said.

Gondwe said this would help bring more agricultural factories in the country, which will help to create jobs for the youth.