Malawi: What lies ahead

Everybody now knows that Jean-Philippe is back in Malawi. What some may not know is that last week he had a serious health problem. But he is now bouncy again and jocund as usual.

As soon as I paid for the drinks and the meal, we left Kamuzu International Airport precincts in a Toyota Harriet that Jean-Philippe has hired for six months.

Without being prompted, he reminded me that it is the person who pays the guitarist that owns the music. He clarified that although I would be driving the vehicle, he would be the commander-in-chief. And so it happened. As we approached the Lilongwe-Kasungu T-junction, I stopped the car and asked him where he preferred to go.

He asked me where the road ahead led to. I told him that if we turned, left we would pass through Mponela, Kasungu, Mzimba and get to Mzuzu and beyond.

“Mponela? Isn’t that from where your acting president ordered sick children from their beds because he wanted to take the beds to his home district?”

“Where did you get that from?”

“The newspapers, the radio stations, the Internet, it’s everywhere. Why are you pretending you don’t know?”

“It sounds staged to me,” I said before suggesting that we drive to Mponela to find out exactly what had happened. Jean-Philippe declined, arguing that ours would have been a futile exercise because by then all potential interviewees would have already been coached, bribed and fed what to say.

 “And if we turn right,” he asked, “where do we get to?

“Lilongwe, the capital city of Malawi”.

“I want to swim in your beautiful lake before Tanzanians get it away from you.”

“But that does not say where you want us to go.”

 “Be polite to donors…er…why don’t we go round the capital city first?”

I agreed and we drove slowly as Jean-Philippe had instructed. When we got to the MIM turn-off, he asked me to stop the vehicle because he wanted to take photos.

“What are those cylindrical things downhill? A nuclear electricity plant?”

“No. Those are maize silos.”

“Have you read the report about tumours in GMO corn-fed rats?

“No.”

“OK. And what’s that humongous building in the distance?”

“You want to photograph the barracks?”

“No. I mean the other one?”

“The State House?”

“Wow! Why don’t you ask your President to sell that house and keep the jet?”

When Jean-Philippe was through with seeing what he wanted to see, we drove down to Kanengo. We drove on towards the Capital City.

“And that abandoned building?”

“That should have been a fertiliser factory. It was built by an investor from Taiwan, but it was abandoned when Malawi chose to recognise China.”

“But your country buys a lot of chemical fertiliser every year. Why don’t you finish this factory and produce your own fertiliser?”

“It seems everybody has forgotten about it.”

Jean-Philippe sighed. I looked at him inquisitively.

 “Your government should think about what lies ahead for Malawi. If you want a bright future, seek local and foreign investments, build infrastructure, subsidise university education and fund research.  If you want to increase agricultural productivity, invest in modern technology. That is where Malawi’s future lies.”