Tobacco industry players have resolved to step up engagement with growers as the country braces for a potentially strong El Niño condition to mitigate the impact on production in the 2026-27 farming season.
In a related development, the government has said it is mobilising the private sector to help deliver Malawi’s El Niño response with businesses expected to support the movement of food, supplies, information and other logistics to high-risk areas.
Tobacco Commission (TC) spokesperson Telephorous Chigwenembe, in a statement made available to The Nation yesterday, said industry players met on Tuesday in Lilongwe to discuss El Niño preparedness and brought together grower associations, leaf buying companies, AHL Group and the Agricultural Research and Extension Trust (Aret).
He said stakeholders agreed to use extension structures and mass media to provide farmers with information on recommended farming practices.
In his address, Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development controller of agricultural services (institutions) Jeromy Nkhoma called for a unified approach to mitigate the effects of El Niño on tobacco production.
He said industry players should translate information from the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services (MET) into practical guidance for farmers.
“Industry players should not approach this as competition because the phenomenon affects the whole economy. Those who come across helpful information about the phenomenon should share with the whole industry,” said Nkhoma.
Aret, on the other hand, recommended several measures growers could adopt, including drought-tolerant seed varieties, deep ploughing and staggered sowing to mitigate the effects of potentially inadequate rainfall.
In its seasonal outlook, MET projected that most areas in the Southern and Central regions are likely to receive below-normal rainfall during the October-December period, while much of the Northern Region and parts of the Central Region are expected to receive normal to above-normal rainfall.
Figures from AHL Tobacco Sales Limited show that Malawi has earned $260.8 million (about K456.6 billion) from tobacco after 16 weeks of the marketing season, following the sale of 130.2 million kilogrammes (kg) at an average price of $2 per kg.
Tobacco remains a key crop to Malawi’s economy, historically contributing an estimated 12 to 15 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and accounting for more than half of the country’s merchandise exports in some years, according to government data.
During a separate meeting yesterday also in Lilongwe, Chief Secretary to the Government Justin Saidi, who chairs the Ad Hoc Cabinet Committee on El Niño, said Malawi cannot afford to wait for the weather shock to hit before acting.
“We cannot afford to wait for the impacts of El Niño before responding. There is no cause for panic; early action remains Malawi’s best defence,” he said.
Saidi said that the government’s preparedness plan is anchored on preparedness and resilience with measures including strengthening early-warning systems, protecting food and water security, pre-positioning supplies and building rapid-response capacity.
He said the government was strengthening collaboration with businesses through the Private Sector Disaster Risk Management Platform in partnership with the Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI).
MCCCI president Ronald Ngwira said businesses view El Niño as an economic and business-continuity issue rather than simply a disaster-management challenge.
The government has already committed K16 billion to El Niño preparedness measures, including solar-powered irrigation systems.
Saidi is on record as having said that Malawi needs K488.5 billion to prepare for the El Niño-induced dry spell dAuring the 2026/27 season. The preliminary preparedness plan covers 14 priority clusters, including agriculture, food security, nutrition, health, water and sanitation, energy, protection and logistics.
Earlier this week, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) put the probability of El Niño occurring at nearly 100 percent until February next year.
