Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and the Grain Traders Association of Malawi have called on government to increase the allocation for maize purchases from K60 billion in the 2025/26 Budget to at least K150 billion to ensure adequate maize stocks.
In separate interviews yesterday, Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture chairperson Sameer Suleman and his Grain Traders Association counterpart Grace Mijiga Mhango said the K60 billion is not enough to address the country’s food requirements.
Suleman said there is critical hunger in the country, as such the committee expected the government to fund maize purchases by a minimum of K150 billion.
He said: “We are pushing the government to increase the amount allocated for maize purchases. K60 billion right now, on paper, it might look like a lot of money, but when we consider the actual tonnage that will be bought and operational costs such as warehousing, fumigation, and others, you will see that it is very little.”
Suleman suggested that the government should channel the money allocated to the Affordable Inputs Programme (AIP) to maize purchases, saying the AIP is draining huge governance resources with little impact on food security.
AIP has been allocated K131.6 billion in the 2025/2026 National Budget, which is almost the same amount that was allocated in the Mid-Term Budget for the 2024/2025 Financial Year after cutting it from K161 billion.
Suleman: “We don’t see AIP working, so it is better to focus on getting food for our people. We don’t want to see people eating chitedze again this year.
“This is the time to start preparing, and we have the resources. Let us allocate the resources responsibly.”
He said the committee plans to meet the Ministry of Finance with the proposal to allocate more resources towards maize purchases.
On her part, Mijiga Mhango said with the rising cost of maize, the K60 billion will cover not more than 60 000 metric tonnes (MT), which is way below what the government requires for humanitarian and emergency response and maize price stabilisation.
She said the country should target to buy between 150 000 to 200 000 MT of maize to meet the requirements, adding that the government would recover part of the money through maize that will be sold through Admarc.
“If we don’t respond well on the food platform, inflation will continue to increase, and things will continue to be expensive,” said Mijiga Mhango, observing that the AIP is not producing the desired results.
When contacted, Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs spokesperson Williams Banda said the Ministry of Agriculture was better-placed to respond to concerns about maize purchases as Treasury only allocates resources based on submitted plans.
“They need to sit down with the Ministry of Agriculture and hear them out on what they plan to do. Maybe they have other ways of getting the maize,” said Banda.
In an interview yesterday, Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale said while he appreciates the concerns raised by the agriculture stakeholders regarding maize allocation, any decision to increase funding would need to be carefully weighed against other national priorities, including agricultural productivity, infrastructure, and social services.
He, however, said ensuring adequate maize reserves is essential for addressing hunger and stabilising food security, especially given recent challenges like drought and rising input costs.
“The government is committed to exploring all viable options to strengthen food security, and this proposal will undoubtedly be part of ongoing discussions as we prepare the 2025/2026 Budget.
“We value the input of stakeholders like the Grain Traders Association and the Parliamentary Committee, and their perspectives will be considered in the broader fiscal planning process,” said Kawale.
Last year, the Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee estimated that 5.7 million people were food-insecure and required food assistance during the 2024/2025 lean season. The total food requirement was estimated to be 261 574 MT.
