Former National Oil Company of Malawi (NOCMA) Chief Executive Officer, Helen Buluma, has sounded the alarm over soaring food prices in Malawi, warning that the rising cost of living is pushing many households to the brink of starvation.
Posting on her Facebook page, Buluma described the situation as dire, arguing that the country’s minimum wage, currently pegged at K126,000 per month as of June 2025, has been rendered meaningless by escalating food prices.
She cited maize, Malawi’s staple food, which is now selling between K65,000 and K80,000 per 50-kilogram bag. Other essentials have also seen steep increases: a loaf of bread costs K2,500–K3,000, a kilogram of beef fetches between K15,000 and K20,000, a tray of eggs is selling for K12,000 to K15,000, a litre of cooking oil costs between K7,000 and K8,500, while a bar of soap is as high as K5,500.
“The reality is no longer about eating three times a day people are struggling to eat once. Malnutrition is worsening, and hunger is claiming lives in villages,” Buluma warned.
While she welcomed the government’s move to reduce cement prices to around K26,000 per bag in some areas, Buluma stressed that the most urgent crisis lies in food affordability, not construction materials.
She has since called on authorities to treat hunger as the nation’s top priority, urging policymakers to introduce immediate measures that will cushion households from the worsening food crisis.
“The government needs to act with urgency. Hunger is no longer a looming threat; it is here, and it is killing people,” she emphasised.
Economists have also echoed similar concerns in recent months, warning that persistent inflation, low agricultural yields, and currency depreciation continue to fuel price hikes, leaving millions of Malawians trapped in poverty and food insecurity.
