A recent survey on tenant growers in Malawi’s tobacco industry has revealed massive irregularities in the way people work in tobacco farms across the country.
The National Statistical Office (NSO) conducted the survey in 2022 with the primary objective of determining key characteristics of tenants in the country.
According to its findings, the tobacco industry employs 355,582 workers, 74.4 percent of whom operate under the tenancy arrangement.
Findings of the survey show that a total of 31,469 children were working in tenancy.
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“Many children seeking work were below the legal working age, with 37.7 percent aged 10-14 years and 8.4 percent aged 5-9 years,” the survey report reads.
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The report, launched in Lilongwe on Friday, further shows that female tenants experience low levels of school attendance, limited access to information about wages and low-quality housing compared to their male counterparts.
The review also found that 30.2 percent of the surveyed tenants had a work agreement with their employers. Out of these, 44.1 percent did not have their contracts in writing.
Minister of Labour Agnes NyaLonje said government is doing all it can to address challenges the survey has exposed.
“We know that in tenancy labour, children are also involved. We also know that tenants do not have individual contracts for their work. We are working on addressing that,” NyaLonje said.
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She added that her ministry will support the formation of workers’ unions with the aim of helping fight challenges tenants experience.
“We know that trade unions don’t really exist in the tobacco industry. When trade unions are active, workers have someone to fight for their rights,” the minister said.
Employers Consultative Association of Malawi Executive Director George Khaki said they will work with stakeholders to make sure that smallholder farmers comply with provisions in the Employment Act.
“We should be very clear that the report that has been launched is looking at household level and at smallholder farmers. It has not mentioned big players in the tobacco industry. The industry is already complying with international and national standards as required by law,” he said.
In 2021, Malawi amended the Employment Act. The amended Act established provisions that abolish the tenancy labour system.
