By Eunice Disi Lole
Minister of Energy and Mining, Jean Mathanga has described the recent fuel price adjustment as a necessary measure to help address Malawi’s prevailing economic challenges.
Mathanga made the remarks on Thursday during a joint press briefing addressed by the Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Dr Shadric Namalomba, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralisation, Joseph Mwanamvekha and Minister of Transport and Public Works, Jappie Mhango.
She said Malawi’s fuel prices had remained lower than those of the neighbouring countries because the Automatic Pricing Mechanism (APM) had been abandoned for three years by the previous government, a move that negatively affected the collection of road levies.
“Malawians were subjected to torture in the past years due to scarcity of fuel, a situation that saw them becoming less productive as people spent long hours queuing for the commodity, abandoning their businesses,” Mathanga said
She added that the recent upward adjustment in fuel prices is expected to eliminate such challenges, as the current administration has reinstated the APM to ensure a consistent fuel supply.
Mathanga further disclosed that the fixed fuel pricing system used by the previous government resulted in Malawi having the lowest fuel prices in the region, leading to about 30 percent of imported fuel being lost through smuggling to neighbouring countries where prices were higher.
“If only the previous government had maintained the APM, fuel prices would have increased gradually. Adopting realistic fuel pricing will help curb smuggling,” said Mathanga.In his remarks, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralisation, Joseph Mwanamvekha, assured Malawians that the recent upward adjustment will enable the government to implement projects more effectively.
Mwanamvekha said failure to adjust fuel prices over a prolonged period adversely affected the Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (MERA), which currently owes fuel suppliers over K1 trillion.
“MERA has failed to remit about K593 billion to the Roads Fund Administration, Malawi Rural Electrification Programme (MAREP), and the Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS). This has negatively affected national development efforts,” he said.
Mwanamvekha further said that going forward, the government is working tirelessly to stabilise the economy and ensure the availability of foreign exchange, while collaborating with the Competition and Fair Trading Commission to prevent unjustified commodity price increases.
Meanwhile, Minister of Transport and Public Works, Jappie Mhango, appealed to Malawians to exercise patience, acknowledging that the current situation may be harsh but necessary to address the county’s economic challenges.
