President Peter Mutharika, in his State of the Nation Address delivered in Lilongwe, during the State opening of the 2nd meeting of the 52nd session of Parliament and the 2026/2027 Budget Meeting, said Malawi faced a serious food crisis when he assumed office, with maize prices beyond the reach of many families.
Mutharika said his government bought and distributed maize freely to Malawians in need, increasing maize supply and bringing prices down.
“Maize is now selling at between MK38,000 and MK55,000 per 50kg bag, compared to around MK100,000 before my government took over,” he said.
The President said his government made affordable fertilizer available to many Malawians almost a week before planting rains. Mutharika said his government has distributed fertilizer to 65% of the targeted 1.1 million beneficiaries, up from 45% at the same time last year.
For the 2026/27 Agriculture Season, he assured Malawians should expect a better delivery of an affordable fertilizer programme, with focus on affordable and sustainable fertilizer and commencement of local fertilizer production.
President Mutharika also said many tobacco farmers previously had 3.5 million kilograms of unsold tobacco. He directed that the tobacco be sold in his mid-year budget review, resulting in almost all tobacco being sold and earning US$8.6 million.
He added that a programme channeling billions of kwacha to mega farms was a total mess. He has directed the responsible Minister to review and redesign the programme to work efficiently and serve all Malawians.
