Items filtered by date: July 2025

By Alinafe Kapatamoyo

Lilongwe, November 26, Mana: The Castel Challenge Cup Round of 16 is well underway with two exciting fixtures set to take place tomorrow 27th November.

Bangwe All Stars will meet Fomo FC at Balaka Stadium, while Karonga United will go head-to-head with Moyale Barracks at Karonga Stadium.

Both games are expected to be closely contested, with each side eager to make a statement and advance further in the competition.

Bangwe All Stars, who have shown impressive form in the tournament so far, will be hoping to secure their place in the quarter finals at Balaka while Fomo FC, on the other hand, will be looking to upset Bangwe All stars and continue their strong run in the tournament.

At Karonga Stadium, Karonga United will be aiming to build on their solid performances in the earlier rounds as they face the experienced Moyale Barracks, The Barracks, known for their tactical discipline and strong squad, will be determined to secure a win and progress to the next stage.

Will Bangwe All Stars and Karonga United live up to expectations, or will Fomo FC and Moyale Barracks cause an upset?

As the Round of 16 unfolds, the pressure is on, and only 90 minutes of football will decide which teams will advance to the quarter-finals.

By Bishop Witmos

Mangochi, November 15, Mana: Driving from Mangochi Boma to Blantyre, approximately 20 Kilometers, one reaches Traditional Authority Chimwala. Unlike other areas in Mangochi, Chimwala is unique due to its geographical position. Turning left, one finds Lake Malombe, while to the right there is breathtaking scenery of mountainous topography.  

Mangochi District is endowed with numerous natural resources, including lakes, minerals and mountains. The district boasts three famous surface water bodies: Lake Malawi, Lake Malombe and Shire River.

Largely, situated in the rift valley of Lake Malawi’s Southern end, Mangochi boasts highlands and hills with a minimum elevation of 472 meters such that the district’s topography falls into two distinct categories: rift valley and hilly forest area.

The district also faces challenges in the education sector in the sense that its mountainous terrain, in some areas of Traditional Authority Chimwala becomes hard to reach area making it hard for people to access social amenities like hospitals and schools.

The geographical condition also becomes a stumbling block to learners to the extent that they long endure difficulties in accessing education such that the most prominent public secondary schools; Chimwala and Changali Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSS) becomes too far on foot and too far apart for option.

“Due to the long distance to school, we feel that access to school is no longer a right,’’ says Amina Hassan, a form two student at Changali CDSS. With 148 learners, including 77 girls, most students travel over 10 kilometers to access secondary education.

To address the challenge in the education sector, Member of Parliament for the area, Mangochi Nkungulu, Aisha Mambo Adams approached Mangochi District Council to agree to construct a 50-capacity girls’ hostel at Changali CDSS using Constituency Development Fund (CDF). Completed within months, the hostel is valued at MK43 million and has a kitchen and wash rooms as a package to provide for the girls very well.

Adams, who also serves as the Second Deputy Speaker of the Malawi Parliament, said she was inspired to construct the girls' hostel after reflecting on her own school days, when she faced the challenge of walking long distances to attend classes.

‘‘I was born and raised in this area, I know what it means to walk a long distance to get education. Unlike boys, whenever girls are back home from school they are given a number of household’s chores, a development which demotivate them from continuing with education,’’ says the legislator.

Access to education is well stipulated in the Malawi 2063 agenda, with a goal to promote formal and quality education to every Malawian child. However, as set in the 2022 to 2030 Social Economic Profile for Mangochi, high dropout of school learners is one of the main challenges currently experienced by Mangochi District Council.

For instance, in Traditional Authority Chimwala, population for projected school going age by 2023 was 25,827, with 2,627 number of school going children that were out of school, making Chimwala the third highest area with most school dropouts in Mangochi.

By 2023, having 15 Traditional Authorities in Mangochi, the Traditional Authorities with highest school dropouts was Traditional Authority Bwananyambi with 13 percent, followed by Traditional Authority Chilipa with 12 percent, and Traditional Authority Chimwala with 10 percent as the area registered 1,275 boys drop out vs 1,230 girl drop outs, while in 2021, the same Chimwala registered 1,416 boys and 1,611 girls drop outs respectively.

According to the 2023 Mangochi District Education Management Information System, dropout rate for girls in schools is slightly higher than that of the boys in most Traditional Authorities in the district, due to long distance to school, inadequate change rooms for girls, as well as child marriage.

Considering geographical and social barriers affecting girls’ education and good intervention by Mangochi Nkungulu legislator, Changali CDSS Deputy Headteacher, Maria Jackson, says that construction of the girls’ hostel was a big plus, anticipating that the facility will help to improve girls’ academic performance.

‘‘Changali CDSS accommodates learners that travel very long distances of over 10 kilometers from home, and as a result, performance of some, especially girls, is not encouraging. Most of them dropped out of school.

‘‘Construction of the hostel here is a sigh of relief to learners, teachers, as well as the community. The hostel will assist students to stay within the school premises and this will in turn help them to concentrate on their studies,’’ Jackson adds.

Mangochi District has for the past years shined in the education infrastructure development through CDF such that during the 2023/2024 fiscal year, the district received a total of MK1.2 billion. With the CDF, number of classroom blocks have been constructed in secondary and primary schools across 12 constituencies.

The following blocks were constructed at the following school and constituencies; Malimbasa, Namitambo, Nandembo as well as Mkumba in Mangochi South Constituency.

Classroom blocks were also constructed at Mendo Primary School and Masanje Nursery School in Mangochi Monkey Bay Constituency while Mangochi Masongola Constituency saw construction of blocks at Changwale, Mandimba 2 and Masongola primary schools.

In Mangochi Nkungulu Constituency, Mdinde Primary School classroom block has been re-roofed while Chilumba Primary school toilet as well as Katole Primary School classroom block in Mangochi West Constituency have been finalized.

CDF was also used in Njera classroom block construction in Mangochi North East as the same fund was used in Mangochi Lutende Constituency for Kabuli Primary classroom block construction. In Mangochi South East, Dambula and Msosa primary schools also got their shares of the CDF following construction of blocks.

Economist at Mangochi District Council, Blessings Stove says despite having a highest learner to classroom ratio, of 15 to 1, the district is currently doing fine on infrastructure development.

“The council is implementing infrastructure projects using three funding windows of Governance to Enable Service Delivery (GESD), District Development Fund (DDF), as well as Constituency Development Fund, and through such funds, we believe that we are on course,” says Stove.

Despite tremendous improvement in infrastructure development, performance in the Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) examination in girls in Mangochi has been hanging between averages, compared to that for boys, for the past three years.

In 2022, for instance, boys pass rate was 63 percent, while girls pass rate was 54 percent, an indication that girls are left behind.

The results also show that CDSS’s in Mangochi are the lowest performers, compared to boarding schools in the district as the results indicate that district boarding schools had 90 percent passing rate, while CDSSs had 51 percent passing rate.

Currently, Mangochi has one grant-aided national secondary school, two district boarding secondary schools, two district day secondary schools, 37 CDSSs as well as 16 private secondary schools.

The secondary school subsector absorbs only 50 percent of primary school leavers, calling for establishment of many public secondary schools in the district.

To address school dropout among girls, a Mangochi-based social activist, Dickens Mahwayo said there was need to lobby for boarding facilities for girls, libraries, as well as teacher houses, in order to attract and retain quality teachers and learners in the district.

"There is a need to construct more Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs) in areas where they are lacking and to upgrade existing ones by providing adequate human resources, materials, and boarding facilities," he adds.

On his recent tour to Mangochi to appreciate developmental projects under CDF, DDF and GESD, Executive Director for National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC), Dr. Kondwani Santhe observed that through CDF, challenges of inadequate infrastructure, as well as school dropout by girls in the district are minimized.

‘‘As National Local Government Finance Committee, we are satisfied with what we have seen here in Mangochi where MPs are constructing high quality education infrastructures. We are impressed with the CDF outcomes adds Santhe.   

By Alex Mlanga

Blantyre, November 26, Mana: Blantyre District Council, Forestry Officer (DFO), Noel Moyo says the council, through the forest sector is expected to plant over 1.1 million trees seedlings during this year’s forestry season.

Speaking in an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana), Moyo said the exercise will begin mid-December and ends mid-April 2025.

He added that despite some challenges, such as droughts, the past forestry seasons had been successful.

‘’We had drought which affected us but at least 65% to 70% of the seedlings we planted last season survived,’’ said Moyo.

The DFO expressed optimism that this year’s tree planting season will be more successful due to good rains and he encouraged communities to work with the forestry extension staff in their respective areas during the forestry season.

Communities are expected to plant tree seedlings in their homes, farmlands and other areas that require afforestation to ensure vegetative cover.

Executive Director of Coordination Union for the Rehabilitation of the Environment (CURE) Charles Mkoka said community participation in forestry season was a good initiative in helping to conserve the environment, address issues of land degradation and promote biodiversity.

He added that afforestation also improves ground water recharge, regulate water flow in rivers and reduce the risk of floods.

‘’By planting million trees, this initiative aligns with global climate actions goals, contributing to carbon neutrality and sustainable development for Blantyre District,’’ said Mkoka.

Blantyre District Council planted one million trees in the 2023/2024 forestry season which started on December 15 to April 15 per the forestry calendar.     

By Leah Malimbasa

Chikwawa, November 25, Mana: Felesiya Chithumba is a traditional doctor who has transformed her passion for traditional medicine into a mission for reforestation.

The 42-year-old mother from Mwiza Village in Sub-Traditional Authority Chiputula in Chikwawa District, started her journey from a humble beginning in 1998 when her child Emmanuel fell terminally ill.

With the child’s health was in jeopardy, Chithumba turned to her grandmother for help instead of heading to a nearby health centre. Her grandmother led her deep into the forest and stopped by a certain tree that she claimed held the cure for the illness.

A mixture of its leaves and bark was prepared immediately and shoved into the baby’s mouth. To Chithumba’s surprise, her son’s ailment vanished in no time and he recovered. For Chithumba, this was a powerful revelation of the value of traditional medicine.

This experience was a turning point, revealing the valuable role of traditional medicine.

“The trees are our heritage,” Chithumba states. “They provide medicine, food and even protection against the harsh climate changes threatening our fields and homes. That day, my grandmother showed me that every tree has a purpose. Some cure, some protect and others sustain life in ways we often take for granted.”

Currently participating in the Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme (CS-EPWP), Chithumba is committed to giving back to the forests that have sustained her family and career for many years.

“The programme is helping us to preserve these valuable natural resources for future generations,” she says. “It is not just about planting trees; it is about restoring balance to the environment.”

Chithumba also practices natural tree regeneration, a sustainable method that nurtures existing trees to encourage growth without cutting or disturbing the ecosystem.

She adds: “By letting trees grow naturally, we protect the forest’s biodiversity and ensure it remains useful for years to come. This work goes beyond my role as a healer—it is about survival, sustainability and ensuring that future generations will have access to the same resources I was fortunate to learn about.”

Chikwawa District Forestry Officer, Hector Nkawihe echoes Chithumba’s sentiments, emphasising the impact of the programme on local reforestation efforts.

Nkawihe says the programme has made strides in promoting Village Forest Areas (VFAs) to ensure communities have convenient access to forest products and services.

“During the last cycle, we made significant progress in establishing new VFAs while sustainably managing the older ones. In Chikwawa, the CS-EPWP now covers 2, 000 hectares of forest, with 335 VFAs managed by Village Natural Resource Management Committees across the district,” he points out.

On the other hand, Chikwawa District Disaster Risk Management Officer, Charity Machika emphasises how reforestation is essential for mitigating disasters such as floods and strong winds.

“One major contributing factor of flooding in Chikwawa is river siltation. So, to avoid siltation of rivers, reforestation is crucial because it helps to stabilise soil and reduce sediments flowing into rivers. Additionally, trees act as a buffer against strong winds, protecting homes and crops,” Machika says.

Chikwawa District CS-EPWP Project Facilitator, Chifundo Thungwa underscores the programme’s broader significance in building household resilience to climate shocks.

“The programme is designed to improve household incomes, enhance food security and build resilience to climate challenges,” Thungwa explains.

Participants are paid to work on catchment-based projects that address environmental degradation, including afforestation, soil conservation and gully reclamation, according to Thungwa.

“These activities reduce surface run-off, prevent soil erosion and rehabilitate degraded land, making communities more resilient to climate change,” she observes.

District Commissioner for Chikwawa, Nardin Kamba commends the programme for reducing disaster risks and improving livelihoods.

“The initiative has positively impacted the lives of participants and is helping to restore degraded land and enhance soil conservation through techniques such as check dams and swales which improve soil fertility and reduce erosion,” he says.

“These techniques improve soil fertility and are vital for sustainable farming and food security in disaster-prone areas,” he says.

Kamba adds that communities frequently hit by floods and other natural disasters face challenges contributing to national development.

However, Kamba notes that programmes that reduce disaster risks are crucial for low-lying and flood-prone districts such as Chikwawa and Nsanje.

“We are working tirelessly to build resilience and mitigate climate change effects. These efforts also align with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 10 and 13 which focus on promoting socio-economic inclusion and combating climate change,” reaffirms Kamba.

Funded by the World Bank and the Multi-Donor Trust Fund, the CS-EPWP is being implemented across all districts in Malawi. 

By Memory Chatonda

Blantyre, November 26, Mana: At least 41,860 farmers are expected to receive farm inputs in Blantyre through the Affordable Input Programmme (AIP) currently underway in the district, as 26 selling points would be operating to serve the beneficiary farmers.

Crops Officer for the Blantyre Agriculture Office, Linda Msiska has told Malawi News Agency (Mana) on Tuesday that the district has already established 26 selling points where beneficiary farmers should buy one bag of NPK weighing 50 kilogrammes, one 50 kilogrammes of Urea, and one packet of 5 kilogrammes of maize seed.

“So far, the programme has started on a positive note as the district has been allocated 26 established markets, unlike last season when there were only 20 established markets. This will help ease congestion at selling points. Our target is to ensure that about 41,860 farmers get the inputs,

“In terms of the costing, for one bag of either 50 kilogrammes of NPK or Urea, the beneficiary is contributing K15, 000 only, while the government is shouldering the market difference. For one pack of 5 kilogrammes of cereal seed, the government is contributing K4, 300, and the farmer pays the market difference," she said.

Msiska singled out the mismatch of beneficiary names and IDs as the only challenge faced the programme face, adding that that such case were being referred to the AIP secretariat for assistance.

One of the beneficiaries from Lunzu, Mary Soko, expressed gratitude to the government for supporting the farmers with the inputs and she pledged to use the inputs to increase crop production as opposed to selling.

The AIP in the country is meant to make agricultural inputs more affordable and accessible to farmers.

The programme's goals include increasing agricultural production, helping poor farming households, improve nutrition status, and to build a healthy population.

On October 14, 2024 President, Dr. Lazarus Chakwera launched the 2024/2025 AIP at Dzundu Primary School ground in Neno.

By Watipa Nyalugwe

Lilongwe, 25 November. Mana: Ministry of Labour, with support from the European Union (EU), under the Zantchito Skills for Jobs Programme, has launched a capacity building initiative to train occupational safety and health (OSH) inspectors on advanced occupational hygiene monitoring techniques.

The initiative marks a critical step towards realizing Vision Zero which is a global strategy to eliminate workplace accidents and injuries.

OSH expert, Johanes Mandowa, said in Lilongwe on Monday that the training program is meant to equip OSH inspectors with knowledge on how to conduct occupational hygiene monitoring in the work place environment.

He said workplace employees are exposed to physical hazards such as dust, noise exposer and poor lighting which are supposed to be identified in a scientific way.

“There is need for

us to equip OSH inspectors with knowledge about occupational hygiene monitoring so that when they go out they are able to anticipate, recognize, evaluate and control these hazards which is based on scientific evidence,” he said.

Labour Commissioner, Hlale Kelvin Nyangulu, said there is a lot of theological knowledge amongst the inspectors where they know all the hazards that prevail in the work places but a gap exists in terms of measuring and quantifying the level of these hazards.

“The missing link is the practical aspect where they do actual measurements to determine hazards in the work places,” he said.

He, therefore, said the training will give inspectors a chance to be able to measure these hazards.

Facilitated by renowned occupational hygienist Peter Jacobs and organized by GOPA Worldwide Consultants, the workshop focuses on bridging gaps in knowledge and practice among Malawi’s OSH inspectors.

The training aligns with the International Labour Organization’s standards, reinforcing Malawi’s commitment to decent work and sustainable economic development.

Participants have been provided with operational manuals to ensure that knowledge gained is sustainable.

The initiative underscores collective efforts required to build a safer, more productive workforce as Malawi moves towards achieving Vision Zero and eliminating workplace injuries and fatalities.

By Tione Andsen

Lilongwe, November 25, Mana:  Government has admitted that access to financial resources remains a corners stone to transformation.

Minister of Trade and industry. Sosten Gwengwe said this during the launch of Grants programme under Southern Africa Trade and Connectivity Project (SATCP) ay Crossroads Hotel in Lilongwe.

He said provision of tangible financial support particularly to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) would unlock the country’s economy.

Gwengwe said the grants would empower the SMEs to produce value added products that would be competitive at regional markets.

“We need to address the bottlenecks facing value adding process and provide alternatives that are long lasting” the Minister added.

He pointed out that the private sector involvement in the implementation of SATCP remains key and needs to play a vital role in helping in financing.

The Minister viewed that the key to the success of the loans would depend on the SMEs that would be reached out and saying there was need to reach out to new one so that they should benefit too.

He urged 15 participating councils to make use of the grants in order to consolidate the issue of promoting value chains.

Gwengwe thanked the World Banks for granting Malawi a 50 percent grant from the US$ 150 million loans to be implemented in the SATCP.  

World Bank Senior Private Sector Specialist, Efrem Chilima said the World Bank was keen to ensure that value addition and commercialization in the agriculture sector was promoted.

He said there are number of projects the Bank was implementing in the country in order to commercialize the agriculture sector in order to achieve economic growth.  

By Austin Kananji

Lilongwe, November 25, Mana: The Ministry of Labour held a pre-departure orientation today at Lilongwe Technical College for the first batch of agricultural workers heading to Israel aimed to prepare them for their upcoming roles and responsibilities, with their departure scheduled for Thursday this week.

Speaking at the event, the Director of Planning in the Ministry of Labour, Patricia Zimpita, emphasised the importance of the pre-departure orientation saying it will provide the necessary information to the successful Malawian Agricultural workers which will help them during their tenure in Israel.

“This is to prepare the successful candidates that applied for the agricultural work in Israel under the Malawi-Israel Labour export programme. We are orienting these candidates for them to know what is expected of them, and what they are going to do in Israel and also how they are going to conduct themselves in Israel so that they do not find themselves in trouble or stranded in any instance,” she said.

Director of Legal Services in the Ministry of Labour, Chapusa Phiri, highlighted the importance of conducting the pre-departure orientation which he said will help the successful candidates understand more the terms and conditions of their contract agreement before leaving for Israel.

“I emphasised much on the employment contract to our young Malawians so that they know what they are letting themselves into and understand their responsibilities as they go to Israel,” he said.

In an interview with one of the selected candidates to work in Israel, Lumbani Chiwaka, expressed the benefit of being part of the successful candidates being recruited by the government.

“The importance is that as Malawians we will learn different aspects concerning the type of irrigation to utilise and bring back that knowledge here in Malawi to showcase to others what happens in the farming sector of Israel,” he said.

The pre-departure orientation aimed to equip the first 29 Malawian agricultural workers as recruited by the government with crucial information about their upcoming employment in Israel by emphasizing the importance of understanding their contracts, and expectations, as per the Memorandum of Understanding which also differentiates it from the previous departures made by the private recruiters where workers were deployed with no orientation on the nurture of the agricultural jobs.

Mzimba, November 25, Mana: Child Affairs Officer in the Ministry of Gender, Community development and Social Welfare, Neil Masamba says government intends to train over 40,000 care givers in Early Childhood Development (ECD) to enhance their tutorial skills. 

Masamba made the remarks on Sunday at Embangweni in Mzimba during an open day organised by the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC)'s Development Broadcasting Unit (DBU). 

She said there are many caregivers who lack requisite skills to train young minds hence the plans by the ministry to offer them training. 

"We acknowledge the gaps in teaching skills among care givers and because of that we will be training them in phases. The aim is to equip them with skills in teaching children", said Masamba. 

MBC's DBU coordinating officer, Sebastian Mthatiwa, urged parents at Embangweni in Mzimba to send their children to ECD centres.

"Early Childhood development is critical in children between 0 and 8 years because it helps build cognitive skills such as language skills, problem solving and memory retention. We therefore urge communities to embrace ECDs for their children," he said. 

Mthatiwa said MBC has entered into a contract with Unicef to raise awareness on the role of men and women in ensuring children between 0 and 8 years attend ECD centres.

Mmbelwa District Council official, Isabel Chakhame said the council attaches great significance to education of children and encouraged parents to send their kids to the centres.

Traditional Authority Mzukuzuku urged organisations to help set up ECD centres in more villages to ensure more children attend early childhood lessons.

By Charles Nkhoma & Martha Rukunya

Lilongwe, November 25, Mana: Minister of Trade and Industry, Sosten Gwengwe, has announced the inaugural Malawi-European Union (EU) Investment Forum, set to take place at the Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe from November 26 to 28, 2024.

Speaking at a press briefing in Lilongwe on Monday, Gwengwe highlighted that the forum aims to solidify investment partnerships with EU member states, paving the way for increased foreign investment and driving Malawi’s economic growth.

“This partnership will open up new opportunities for local Malawians, with a focus on three key pillars: Agriculture, Tourism, and Energy. This forum is also a call to action, encouraging stakeholders to work together to attract investment and unlock Malawi’s economic potential,” he stated.

EU Ambassador to Malawi, Rune Skinnebach, said the forum is part of on-going efforts of the EU in Malawi of Growing Malawi together (Kukuza Malawi Limodzi) campaign and the EU Global Gateway Strategy.

 “The Investment Forum serves as a stepping stone for the roll out of the Global Gateway EU-Africa investment package which aims to foster strong, inclusive and sustainable growth across Africa by promoting green and digital transitions, infrastructure development, and human capital growth. The forum offers a vibrant platform for potential investors and project owners to engage and collaborate,” he said.

The Malawi-EU Investment Forum marks a significant milestone in strengthening economic ties and attracting transformative investments to Malawi.

It underscores government commitment to fostering sustainable growth and creating opportunities for its people through strategic international partnerships.

President Dr Lazarus Chakwera is expected to official open the forum on Tuesday.