Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) Deputy Governor William Matambo has challenged the country’s private sector to take advantage of initiatives in place to grow their export volumes and generate the much-needed forex.
Matambo was speaking in Lilongwe on Wednesday when the Export Development Fund (EDF) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Botswana-based Norsad Capital aimed at boosting the provision of financing solutions that could support the growth of businesses in the country.
According to Matambo, the role of RBM is to manage the available forex and not generate it, saying forex generation is the responsibility of the private sector.
“There is a common misconception that we see and hear all the time. Reserve Bank, as the name suggests, Reserve, is for us to store. So we cannot store what we do not have.
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“I think it is up to the private sector to generate resources, foreign exchange especially, through various interventions,” Matambo said.
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He observed that the partnership between EDF and Norsad Capital would bring about many positive changes and contribute significantly to the growth and development of the local private sector.
According to Matambo, Malawi, as a country, needs more strategic partners like Norsad Capital who are key in providing financing solutions that are easily accessible and affordable, especially for the country’s key export-oriented projects and enterprises.
EDF Managing Director Fredrick Chanza said the MoU is crucial in addressing funding gaps that have impeded the growth of promising enterprises in Malawi.
“We are keenly aware of the funding challenges that enterprises in Malawi face, especially inadequate innovative financial instruments and short breath of available long-term financing that is key to business expansion and development of strategic start-ups, such as industrial parks, export trading companies, mining venture, mega farms, and large-scale specialised agro-processing industries, which are key to Malawi’s industrialisation as well as effective integration into the regional value chain under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” Chanza said.
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Norsad Capital Chief Executive Officer Kenny Nwosu said his firm expects the partnership with EDF to be one of many productive collaborations.
“Our principal operational area is the Sadc region and access to finance remains a key bottleneck to growth in our markets.
“The region and markets are underserved, yet there are enormous business opportunities. Therefore, we are looking to work more closely with our long-established and other aligned partners to provide funding and create the desired impact. EDF is a long-established partner that has been involved in the growth and evolution of Norsad Capital,” he said.
