It has been a sombre and dark week for Malawi, a country already grappling with all manner of disconsolate goings-on.
While we were still fathoming out the passing of sports administrator Henry Chibowa, more sad news suffused the nation: Former cabinet minister and one of Malawi’s most talented economists Goodall Gondwe had died in Lilongwe.
By all measure, Goodall, as he was fondly called by his admirers, was an exceptional economist.
He will be remembered for many achievements including steering Malawi to register a six percent economic growth, a record feat which was only a mark below oil-rich Qatar.
For over 40 years, Goodall pursued an illustrious career in politics, the public service and international organisations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), where he spent 22 years, and the African Development Bank, where he worked for four years.
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Probably, no economist in Malawi has achieved what he did.
During the time Bingu wa Mutharika—another economic connoisseur— was ruling this country, specifically between 2005 and 2008, Goodall, as minister of finance, also assisted in slashing Malawi’s inflation from 30 to six percent.
While it is the responsibility of a country’s central bank to check inflation through monetary policy, which primarily involves changing interest rates, a ministry responsible for finance, which is the holder of the fiscal policy, assists in fighting price increases.
Government also reduces spending to help reduce inflation.
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In short, inflation trends reflect on the status of an economy, and Goodall was credited for keeping Malawi’s economy sufficiently balanced.
During his time, Malawi had its debt cancelled by the World Bank and the IMF under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (Hipc) initiative which the Breton Woods institutions launched in 1996 to ensure that no poor country faces an unmanageable debt burden.
To participate in the Hipc initiative, countries need to meet certain criteria, commit to policy changes to reduce poverty and demonstrate a record of doing so.
And to be considered for assistance under the initiative, a country is supposed to be eligible to borrow from the World Bank’s International Development Agency, which provides interest-free loans and grants to the world’s poorest countries, and from the IMF’s Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, which provides loans to low-income countries at concessional rates.
They must also face an unsustainable debt burden that cannot be addressed through traditional debt-relief mechanisms such as being forgiven a portion of the debt, lowering the interest rate or stretching payments over a longer period.
The country must also have a track record of reform and sound policies through IMF- and World Bank-supported programmes.
During Goodall’s time as finance minister, Malawi was eligible for the Hipc initiative.
Any hope for debt relief must be anchored on these parameters, and it takes a Goodall to meet them.
It takes sound economic policies and strategies to convince multilateral lenders that you deserve their act of mercy.
So, as we mourn the passing of this great son of the soil, we must look back to his economic strategies and gauge how we can replicate them in these troubled economic times.
Several officials in the present government have gone to great length in extolling Goodall’s political and economic virtues.
It would do a great deal of honouring his legacy if they attempted to achieve a modicum of what he did.
They can simply fight to control the runaway inflation and devise economic strategies that sway the IMF to smile at Malawi with a new aid package.
As the body of Goodall gets interred tomorrow, let the mound beneath which it lies be a reminder to all that there once was an economist who turned around Malawi’s fortunes.
Let it prod those who are failing this country to take corrective actions and remember that leaving behind a good legacy is a proud thing.
At 87, Goodall lived a full life.
Some of us may have wished he matched the age of his namesake Australian scientist David Goodall who, at 104, availed euthanasia due to old age rather than a terminal illness.
We might have hoped he spared one more moment to help resuscitate Malawi’s ailing economy and make it as attractive as it was during his time as finance minister.
But in all truth and fairness, Goodall did his part and showed those coming after him the way; just that many have not chosen to embrace his free lessons.
Perhaps, as is often the case with humans, more conversations about his exploits and how to keep his legacy alive will drive the nation back to the Hipc days.
Yet, that would also depend on the willingness of those managing the economy now to devise strategies of ensuring the present challenges are addressed in their time in charge.
For good ole Goodall, my supplication is that as he was respected while he lived, he must be remembered with reverence and affection afterwards.
