BY BLAIR MHONE
The European Union (EU) has committed about K352 billion in support to Malawi for the next three years.
In a statement released by the EU, the committed funds are under its 2021-27 Multi-Annual Indicative Programme (MIP) for Malawi which is in line with Malawi Vision 2063.
“The programme has been developed in close consultation with Malawi Government, civil society organisations, including women and youth organisations, local authorities, representatives of the private sector, the United Nations (UN) and other partners and, of course, EU member states,” part of the statement reads.
The statement continues by saying, “for the period 2021-24, the EU would seek to reinforce bilateral cooperation in three main priority areas of green and resilient economic transformation, democratic and economic governance and human development and social inclusion.”
The EU also cites climate action, in line with the European Green Deal, gender equality and digital development as some of the cross-cutting priorities in the realisation of MIP objectives.
Meanwhile EU Ambassador to Malawi Rune Skinnebach hailed the long standing relationship between the union and Malawi.
“The European Union has a long standing partnership with Malawi. Today, we are marking a new step in our cooperation and, by committing ourselves to this long-term support, we do not only reaffirm the EU’s role as a reliable partner for Malawi for the future. We also demonstrate that EU-Malawi relations have developed from a donor-beneficiary relationship to a more mature and equal partnership characterised by shared responsibilities, interests and solutions,” he said.
