UK High Commissioner to Malawi, Ms Fiona Ritchie, says the UK government will continue providing different support to Malawi.
She said this yesterday during a reception to mark the birthday of His Majesty King Charles and the 60 years of UK-Malawi partnership at the British High Commissioner’s residence in Lilongwe.
Speaking at the reception, Ritchie said they have heard loud and clear that what people want from the UK is support for modern solutions to intractable problems, and they will continue to do that.
“We will continue supporting new technologies, be that in solar power for health centres or looking at how social protection support reaches individuals through mobile money transfer through world-class research that tackles the global challenges we face like Covid, or through the collaboration of our academics and thought leaders,” she explained.
According to Ritchie the partnership with Malawi it’s not about charity or dependence.
“A modem partnership goes beyond aid. In the future, I hope to see more collaboration in areas such as technology and trade to deliver our shared objectives,” she explained.
Ritchie also commended the good relationship that Malawi has with the UK.
In her remarks, Minister of Foreign Affairs Nancy Tembo said over the years, Britain has remained one of Malawi’s major development partners, complementing government efforts in providing social services and addressing bottlenecks along the country’s development trajectory.
“British support covers all critical sectors of our society including health, education, macro-economic stability, climate change, governance, and public financial management, among others.
In public financial management, the UK is supporting us in delivering inclusive economic growth, as well as leveraging expertise in tackling unsustainable debt, which helped us to qualify for the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Credit Facility,” she explained.
Tembo also noted that Malawi is very grateful to His Majesty’s government for tripling its Official Development Assistance (ODA) to Malawi from £16,340,000 in the 2023/2024 financial year to £51,000,000 for the 2024/2025 financial year.
“This significant increase reflects the importance of the UK’s partnership with Malawi and the UK’s commitment to supporting Malawi’s Vision 2063. Therefore, I wish to express our sincere gratitude to His Majesty’s Government for the tremendous support the UK continues to relentlessly provide to Malawi,” said Tembo.
