Parliament Monday passed 15 out of 59 votes valued at K528.6 billion in the 2024-25 national budget.
The votes were passed within a space of two hours, raising hope that the financial plan could be passed before Friday this week.
But the House deferred three votes related to the Independent Complaints Commission, National Intelligence Service and National Local Government Finance Committee.
Finance Minister Simplex Chithyola Banda has since hailed the level of budget scrutiny by lawmakers and expressed satisfaction with the speed at which budget votes are passing.
First to be passed was the K42.516 billion allocation for State Residences, which attracted questions from Mangochi South West lawmaker Shadrick Namalomba and Thyolo Central lawmaker Ben Malunga Phiri.
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Chithyola Banda ably dealt with the questions.
For the 15 votes that were passed, scrutiny came from four MPs, namely Namalomba, Phiri, Nsanje Lalanje MP Gladys Ganda and Dedza Central East lawmaker Joshua Malango.
The local Chancellor of the Exchequer said he decided to defer the three votes because of technicalities.
“We would like to make sure that a vote that gets passed should be the vote that is reflecting the will of the people,” Chithyola Banda said.
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Addressing concerns from the opposition Democratic Progressive Party when he wound up debate on the budget, Chithyola Banda said the budget is realistic and that it is designed to fuel the development of Malawi.
According to Chithyola Banda, the budget assumptions are informed by business surveys which incorporate economic sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and transport.
He added that budget assumptions/parameters are estimates that considered the risks from economic shocks such as El Niño.
“It should also be noted that these assumptions are not static and were generated before the onset of the rainy season. Therefore, the estimations underpinning the 2024-25 budget are/were realistic and present a true reflection of the expected outcome.
“By the end May 2024, macroeconomic indicators with prevention interventions such as nutrient-dense food and micronutrient supplements, counseling and cash transfers.
Further, Unicef is working on building shock responsive education systems that are prepared and can ensure continuity of learning during and after crises.
This, according to Unicef, includes investing in multiple remote learning modalities, both digital and non-digital, accessible to all children, including the most vulnerable.
According to Kadilli, extreme weather is expected to be the norm in Eastern and Southern Africa in the years to come.
“As we work to improve the resilience of children, families and communities by strengthening shock responsive social services, we must also come together to reduce the effects of climate change on vulnerable populations in the region,” Kadilli said.
Addressing the nation on Saturday night, Chakwera said preliminary assessment indicates that close to two million farming households have been affected.
According to Chakwera, specifically, 749,113 hectares of maize have been affected, representing 44.3 percent of the national crop area, adding that other important crops such as rice, soya beans, cowpeas, and groundnuts have also been affected.
“Our initial estimate is that close to 600,000 metric tonnes of maize valued at K357.6 billion will be required for this humanitarian response programme.
“There is no one in this country who is at fault for any of the disasters that keep coming against us. But if we stand united and put away the politics of pettiness and negativity to confront this latest disaster, there is no one in this country who should die because of hunger,” Chakwera said.
by incorporation of latest developments, including maize and other crop harvest,” Chithyola said. will be revised accordingly
He added that, on the request for increased allocations to agriculture to mitigate the impact of El Niño on food security, an additional K13.5 billion has been allocated for the procurement of maize.
On rising public debt, the Finance Minister said the growth in debt was inevitable because of the circumstances that the country found itself in, including calamities and disasters such as cyclones, Covid, the cholera outbreak and the effects of the Russia-Ukraine War amidst the low growth levels of the economy.
He added that the exchange rate fluctuation has adversely impacted the Malawi Kwacha value of external debt stock and debt servicing, clearance of a backlog of arrears through issuance of promissory notes, among others.
He told the august House that the government is on course with debt restructuring negotiations with bilateral and commercial creditors.
“So far, the government has received assurances from the governments of China and India on the intention to restructure the debt.
“With regard to the other bilateral creditors such as Kuwait Fund and the Saudi Fund, negotiations are at an advanced stage and now centred on agreeing on the revised term sheets and it is hoped that this will be concluded soon,” Chithyola Banda said.
