PAC asks Admarc to ensure maize availability
Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has asked financially crippled Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (Admarc) to ensure that its nationwide markets have maize stocks to enable a majority of Malawians purchase the grain.
During a meeting with Admarc management yesterday, PAC vice-chairperson Nicholas Dausi said people are dying of hunger, as such, every effort should be made to ensure that the Admarc markets have maize.
He said: “You have a daunting task to ensure that there is maize throughout the country. Our concern is crystal clear, people are suffering when Admarc is there.
“There is not even a single kilogramme [kg] in those rural areas and yet you say Admarc’s role is price stabilisation, food security etc.”
Dausi made the appeal after Admarc acting general manager Ethel Zilirakhasu told the committee that the parastatal is facing challenges to ferry maize to markets.
She said Admarc has found itself in a difficult situation after transporters raised rates and that it does not have money to move maize from depots.
Said Zilirakhasu: “When we started, our rate was K90 per tonne per kilometre [km], but as I am speaking, that rate has gone up. The transporters are asking for K145 per km on average. So, we are having that challenge.
“We asked for support from the Ministry of Agriculture on funding so that we are able to transport the maize. We are still waiting for the response, but the biggest challenge is transport. We will still check with the ministry if they can fund us so that we are able to distribute the maize across the country.”
She assured the committee that Admarc has maize, but needs about K400 million to transport it.
Zilirakhasu added that the parastatal is also banking on the Malawi Government and the World Bank to finalise processes to acquire the maize held under collateral by commercial banks to flood the markets and stabilise prices.
Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale could not be reached on his mobile phone while Ministry of Agriculture Principal Secretary Dixie Kampani did not pick up his phone when called for comment.
Government reopened some Admarc markets on December 1 2022 to ensure that people have access to maize and that they are food secure.
On November 21, 2022 Kawale assured that government will move maize to all Admarc markets.
Private traders are selling a kilogramme (kg) of maize at K543 or K27 150 for a 50 kg bag while Admarc said it will be selling at K300 per kg or K15 000 for a 50 kg bag.
