Africa-Press – Malawi. LUCRATIVE ABROAD?—Mining brings revenue, not to MalawiPresident Lazarus Chakwera Monday opened the 2025 Malawi Mining Investment Forum, where he criticised mining officials for apparently being too secretive about deals taking place in the country.
Chakwera described this tendency as unacceptable and urged authorities to be open and tell the country’s stakeholders, Malawians, what minerals the country has and what deals they have entered into with investors.
“It is not acceptable that Malawians should hear about the rutile operations in Kasiya from a press conference by a foreign company in Australia or from that company’s report on the performance of its stock on the London Stock Exchange, as if here in Malawi the Ministry of Mining has no information to give Malawians about how my government is securing a prosperous future for them through this resource,” the President said.
He went on to order that the silence from the ministry regarding activities in the mining sector must end immediately, because the minerals are a matter of national security.
Chakwera told the conference that he is closely monitoring what is happening with the Mining Development Agreements (MDAs) and is receiving feedback from global experts in mining agreements to determine whether the MDAs authorities are offering foreign companies are the best deals.
The Malawi leader said he expects the Ministry of Mining to be transparent about MDAs for every mine in the country, and that investors partnering with the government should also be accountable to Malawians by sharing their side of the story.
He also revealed that the government intends to create a Sovereign Fund through which the proceeds from mining activities will be secured for all Malawians, for the benefits of mining need to go beyond corporate social responsibility to one village.
“But the bottom line is that those of you in the sector need to stop operating in secret and start telling Malawians what is being done to ensure that their minerals are safe,” he repeated.
Chakwera added that there is no doubt about how much wealth Malawi has hidden beneath its soils and told investors that when they set foot on Malawian soil, they set foot on untold and unbelievable riches.
“Beneath these soils is uranium, which the nations of the world need to fuel their nuclear reactors for the generation of electricity. Beneath these soils is gold, which the nations of the world need to safeguard their wealth in the event of economic disasters.
“Beneath these soils is coal, which the nations of the world need to generate steam-powered electricity for domestic use and fuel manufacturing plants for the production of steel and cement,” he said.
Chakwera said the only people his government is interested in working with are serious investors who have the resources to invest heavily in the sector, the global market networks to turn those investments into Malawi’s prosperity and a reputation for credible dealings.
He spoke up against exploiting Malawi through price transfers and cleverly masked subsidiary companies whose ultimate beneficiaries are hidden ghosts receiving payments in offshore accounts from the proceeds of Malawi’s minerals while Malawians languish in poverty.
“We welcome credible investors who want to work with us in the context of long-term partnership, not economic exploiters who are just looking to make a quick buck.
“And I want to plead with Malawians who are working in the mining sector not to fall for the tricks of the exploiters or imitate their tactics,” he said.
Ken Zikhale Ng’omaMinister of Mining Ken Zikhale Ng’oma has said mining has the potential to contribute over 30 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from the current one per cent.
Zikhale Ng’oma added that Malawi has many mining projects which, once operational, will help mining replace agriculture as the top contributor to the GDP.
According to the minister, Malawi is still poor despite being endowed with plenty of minerals because of the mistakes made by past regimes.
Chief Geologist Enock Chiwona said Malawi could earn over $1.8 billion (approximately K3.1 trillion) if all its major mines were opened.
The forum, which continues in Lilongwe today, is being held under the theme ‘Advancing Malawi’s Mining Agenda in an Evolving Global Industry’.
Malawi’s mineral resources have long been a subject of concern, as the country continues to see its valuable minerals exploited by foreign mining companies, with little benefit to its people.
The country apparently faces several challenges, including a lack of local value addition, weak regulatory frameworks and foreign ownership of mining operations that result in most profits being repatriated abroad.
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