Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera outlined a compelling case for investing in the country’s agriculture sector at the Malawi Partners’ Conference 2024, held on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Addressed a high-level audience, President Chakwera highlighted Malawi’s numerous advantages including its expansive arable land, abundant water resources, access to regional markets, and stable political leadership.
Chakwera said “Malawi has 5.3 million hectares of arable land, representing 45% of its total land area; Malawi has abundant water resources, including Lake Malawi, Africa’s third-largest freshwater lake and several major river systems; Malawi has access to a market of over 100 million people in the SADC and COMESA region.”
He also emphasized Malawi’s “visionary, stable, democratic political leadership and will, creating an enabling environment for public and private funding & investments in an open economy.”
Notably, the event was graced by the presence of Mozambique’s President, Felipe Jacinto Nyusi, whom Chakwera described as his “dear brother.” Nyusi’s attendance underscored the warm relations flourishing between Malawi and Mozambique within the SADC region and their commitment to fostering regional cooperation.
“Your presence here speaks volumes about the warm relations that exist amongst the SADC political leadership,” Chakwera told President Nyusi, expressing gratitude for the solidarity and support Mozambique has shown for Malawi’s vision.
The Malawi Partners’ Conference 2024 provided a platform for the host country to showcase its ambitious Malawi 2063 Vision, which aims to transform the nation into an upper-middle-income economy by 2063. Central to this plan is a focus on enhancing agricultural productivity and commercialization, with Agriculture, Tourism and Mining (ATM) as deliberate toolkit strategy.
Chakwera also highlighted ongoing infrastructure development projects in Malawi, inviting private sector investors and development partners to explore opportunities in the agriculture sector, particularly in areas such as agro-processing, value addition, and the establishment of a fertilizer plant.
“Malawi is not only a land of opportunities, but also a nation ready to meet the global demand for high-quality products,” Chakwera said, expressing confidence that the event would help forge new partnerships and identify innovative strategies to drive investment in the agriculture sector.
