President Lazarus Chakwera has condemned donors for opposing subsidies in Africa when their governments also provide subsidies to their own farmers.
He was speaking at Pilimiti Primary School Ground in Zomba during the launch of the K160 billion Affordable Input Program (AIP).
The Malawi leader said there are some people from developed countries who argue that governments in Africa should not be providing subsidized agriculture inputs to citizens.
He said: “What they forget is that in the developed countries, governments intervene to assist farmers so that they should produce more crops and find markets across the world. Our farmers even lack markets because developed countries assist their farmers, so why shouldn’t we intervene for our farmers?”
Chakwera added that the AIP is a deliberate program aimed at eradicating perennial hunger so that when hunger is eradicated, the government can focus on other development projects.
According to Chakwera, for a long time in Malawi there has been a huge gap between the few rich people and the poor who are in large number. He said the AIP will help redistribute resources to reduce that gap.
He added that the poverty in Malawi is man-made and it can be reversed using the resources which God gave the country.
“This why the government has to intervene when its citizens are struggling hence the implementation of this subsidy program,” he said.
He then urged farmers to work hard in their fields to ensure that they get a good harvest. According to Chakwera, the government is engaging with countries such as Sudan to buy agricultural products from Malawi.
