Malawi will not ban luxury imports–Gwengwe
Malawi government has said it will not ban luxury imports as doing so would contravene Sadc trade protocols and agreements.
Minister of Industry and Trade Sosten Gwengwe said this in an interview with Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) yesterday.
Gwengwe was reacting to proposals from some local economic commentators that government should ban importation of some luxurious goods and those that can be produced locally as one way of saving the country’s foreign exchange earnings.
Malawi is facing economic challenges characterised by the shortage of foreign exchange, rising costs of living, high bank and inflation rates.
Gwengwe said banning luxury imports will only contravene trade protocols and agreements Malawi which signed as a member of both the Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa).
“If we ban importation of those goods, it would also be in conflict with principles that we have all along been encouraging that neighbouring countries should open their borders to goods and services from each other.
“If we ban imports from our neighbours, what will happen if they also decide to ban goods we export to their countries?” Gwengwe asked.
The minister, however, appealed to Malawians to show patriotism by buying local goods.
He said government is working hard to encourage its ministries and departments to buy goods and procure services locally.
Gwengwe added that the ‘Buy Malawian’ Campaign is also working and some international chain stores operating in the country are now buying goods made locally.
Business News recently quoted Chancellor College economist Professor Ben Kaluwa as arguing that banning imports cannot work in a liberalised economy such as Malawi.
Kaluwa, however, said if government is really serious about discouraging people from importing luxurious goods, it should increase duty on such goods and not necessarily banning them.
Govt wants international chain stores to procure farm produce such as vegetables and fruits locally to save the country’s foreign earnings.
