Malawi could be moving in reverse.
Malawi could be going back to the basics.
Malawi could be treading where the original Akafulas, who inhabited this country before Eastern and Western religion gave chase to traditional religion, trod.
I am talking about the days of barter, before money was introduced and took the fun out of trade.
Days when those who had chickens but wanted something equivalent were assured of a just system of watering their heart’s desires. Days when no one starved because the communal spirit of Malawi, which is as thick as blood, run freely in the veins and arteries of the people that called this place home.
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Sweet days, oh!
Which brings me to the next point. The connotation of the word ‘reverse’. Mostly, people— read, some people— associate the word reverse with negativity.
I find it wrong because moving in reverse can have positive outcomes, as to when one gets stuck in mud and manages to pull the vehicle out— in reverse.
Sometimes, reverse can mean sliding back to an undesirable situation or position. Fine and well. Lucky are those that reverse the positive way.
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Can our policymakers be among the lucky ones, in terms of reversing the positive way? In as far as we are talking about taking the ‘reverse’ mode in terms of trade, I think not.
Of late, the government has been in the news because of the $124.5 million (K125 billion) agreement it signed with Romanian company East Bridge Estates, which has been tasked to supply 600,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser to Malawi under commodity exchange arrangement.
Apparently, this was done before consultations with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) were finalised.
It also transpired that the Ministry of Agriculture wrote the ACB in April 2023, asking it to conduct due diligence on the company, but, before the consultations between the ministry and the ACB were finalised, the government proceeded to sign the contract.
On May 11 2023, the ACB raised a number of issues in response to the letter from the Ministry of Agriculture about the deal and the ministry gave a response to the bureau.
But before the bureau gave its response, the deal was signed on May 19 2023.
Even the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Authority (PPDA) feigned ignorance on the deal, saying Malawi’s laws do not recognise barter trade.
We must not forget that Section 37 (11) of the PPDA act says “Single source method of procurement or any high value procurement shall be subject to vetting by the Anti-Corruption Bureau, pursuant to the powers conferred on the bureau under section 10 0f the Corrupt Practices Act.”
Well, before the laws are put in place, it transpires that the government has embarked on another barter journey— a journey to the past. This time, it is courting Egypt.
Egyptian Ambassador to Malawi Mohamed El-Sharif has disclosed that his country is in talks with Lilongwe over a possible barter deal for agricultural produce in exchange with fertiliser.The revelations by El-Sharif come barely a month after a similar barter trade arrangement between the Government of Malawi and Romanian firm, East Bridge, opened a can of worms.
According to El-Sharif, Egypt is interested in commodities such as tea, coffee, rice, tobacco and groundnuts in exchange with fertiliser.
He said Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi recently met President Lazarus Chakwera in Lusaka, Zambia, where the issue was also discussed.
Even our Foreign Affairs Minister Nancy Tembo has said this could be in line with recent discussions Chakwera had with the Egyptian president during a recent visit.
The two leaders explored avenues for promoting trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.
I think there is nothing wrong with countries exploring ways of enhancing socio-economic development.
What is wrong is pursuing routes that have not been paved through the enactment of requisite laws.
In this case, Malawi needs a law that sheds light on barter trade. Without this law, duty bearers and service users will forever be locked in debate over practices as ancient as barter.
Call it the Barter nation.
