On Friday night, December 6, 2024, the Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) was abuzz with celebration as the National Product Magazine (NPM) Gala honored outstanding achievers in business, industry, and entrepreneurship.
Among the top winners were Salima Sugar Limited and the National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF), both recognized for their exceptional contributions to Malawi’s growth agenda and their alignment with the Malawi 2063 vision.
Salima Sugar Limited, a state-owned subsidiary of the Greenbelt Authority, stood out with two prestigious awards. The company was named “Sugar Producer of the Year”, a testament to its ability to overcome the nation’s sugar crisis and improve production under the leadership of its Executive Chair, Webster Kossam.
Kossam himself was awarded “Most Improved CEO in the Manufacturing Sector of the Year”, highlighting his transformative leadership.
Expressing his gratitude, Kossam described the accolades as a motivation to continue the company’s reform efforts.
“Despite the sugar crisis, we increased production from 18,000 metric tons to 21,000 metric tons, and with full operational capacity, we aim to reach 30,000 metric tons,” he said.
Kossam also emphasized the potential of Salima Sugar’s unused 4,000 hectares of land and appealed for more partnerships to boost sugar cultivation and exports to address Malawi’s forex scarcity.
Meanwhile, NEEF was awarded “Best Financial Lending Institution” following an online poll conducted by NPM from August 29 to September 11, 2024. Garnering 3,800 votes, NEEF topped its category, recognized for empowering underserved Malawians.
CEO Humphrey Mdyetseni thanked Malawians and NPM for the honor. “This award is a testament to our commitment to improving livelihoods and fostering economic empowerment,” he said.
The NPM Gala celebrated excellence across 40 categories, recognizing individuals, companies, and products that have significantly contributed to economic growth in Malawi and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. Notable winners included:
- Personality of the Year in Beauty Industry: Spiwe Mzembe
- Make Up Artist of The Year: Cecilia Magaleta
- Best Food Packaging of the Year: Easy pack limited
- Cooking oil Brand of the year: Agri Value Chain their cooking oil brand Purola.
- Bottled Water Supply of the Year: Namadzi bottlers.
- Best Service Delivery in Banking sector: Eco Bank.
- Best Sauce and Pepper Manufacturer of the Year in Malawi: Harry Admson
- Best Beverage Manufacturer of the Year: Trade Kings for Zambia
- Overall Business Woman of the Year: CHACHA
- Entrepreneur of the Year: Lehome furniture by lefunati Tambala won as furniture
- Botique of the Year: Emmie Kankwech
- Fertilizer Company of the Year: ETG Agri input Malawi
- Innovative CEO of the Year in Agriculture Sector: Pixus Agricuture Ceo Ronald Ngwira
- Oustanding CEO in Manufacturing Sector of the Year: Agri Value Chain Ceo Regnish Debraal
- Sugar Company of The Year: Salima Sugar Limited
- Improving Ceo in Manufacturing sector of The Year: Salima Sugar Executive Chair Webster Kossam
- Best Business Journalist of The Year: Alex Banda of Zodiak business reporter Alex Banda
- Best Online Journalist of The Year: Macdonald Chiwayula of MBC.
- Best Electronics supplier: Sky Electronics
- Best Mattress supplier: Robray limited
- Best Manufacturer of the Year: Sungold
- The Best Tiles supplier in the Manufacturing sector: Adlites Tiles
- Steel Manufacturer in Malawi: Longiti Malata
- Distinctive Hotel and super service in Southern Region: Crossroads Hotel BT
- Hardware store of the year: Phalombe Hardware
- The Best fertilizer supplier of the year: ETG
NPM Managing Director Arthur Chinyamula reaffirmed the magazine’s commitment to promoting local products and breaking trade barriers. He encouraged manufacturers to embrace NPM’s vision of flooding the SADC market with Malawian goods, generating much-needed foreign exchange for the country.
The gala also marked the launch of NPM’s 110th edition titled “On the Road to Malawi 2063: Unlocking Trade Barriers,” underlining the nation’s ambitious agenda for sustainable development and economic growth.
