Report cautiously on MCC Compact—Minister
Minister of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining Bright Msaka has asked the media to carefully report on the on-going implementation of the $350 million energy project by Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) that seeks to revitalise the energy sector.
Msaka said this in Lilongwe on Friday when he addressed news editors from various media houses in the country during a cocktail hosted by the Millennium Challenge Account-Malawi (MCA-M) for Malawi Editors Forum (Maef).
He said: “What you write influences the decision of investors. I personally do not meet these investors on a daily basis, but they do read your stories and hence you must make sure that this investment by MCC is not in vain.”
While describing his interaction with the editors as “a rewarding experience”, Msaka said it was imperative for the media to appreciate the on-going efforts by MCA-M through the implementation of the compact programme.
He said the programme, which entered into force in 2013 and is due to close in September next year, has already started bearing fruits.
According to the minister, although no country in sub- Saharan Africa boasts of adequate power supply, that in itself should not be seen as an impossibility for Malawi to generate more power.
Said Msaka: “Power is difficult to make, but difficulty is not synonymous to impossibility. Two to three years to come, we will add more power to the national grid.”
He said that was the reason government unbundled the then sole power utility company, Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) into Escom and Electricity Generation Company (Egenco). Besides, he said, the power sector has been liberalised to allow more independent power producers (IPPs) to generate electricity.
Speaking on behalf of the editors, Maef secretary general Gracian Tukula commended MCA-M for mobilising the editors to appreciate the compact programme.
During the event, MCA-M chief executive officer Dye Mawindo said the project has sofar disbursed 45 percent of the total resource envelope, but remained optimistic that the whole resources will be effectively utilised come September 2018.
The MCC compact is a single-sector programme designed to contribute to Malawi’s efforts in reducing poverty through sustainable economic growth.
