Malawi Update –Refugees Relocated & more –18th May 2023

th of May: 2023

In early April this year, Ken Zikhale Ng’oma, the Minister of Homeland Security, announced via a statement that all refugees living outside Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa should relocate to the camp from the 1st to the 15th of April. He said if they didn’t relocate by the due date, the Malawi Police Service and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services would force them to.

st of February: 2023

On Wednesday the 17th, Lilongwe residents reported that the police raided several areas in the city, arresting refugees and forcibly taking their belongings in cars. This happened in places such as Area 24 and 36, Kawale and Chilinde. Eyewitnesses said some refugees hid from the police to avoid being arrested, while others closed their businesses in fear of having them raided.

The plunders might happen in other cities and districts in the next few days.

On Thursday the 18th, local news reported that the police had forcibly taken over three hundred refugees and asylum seekers - many of whom are Burundian and Rwandan nationals - and had taken them to Maula Prison as they wait to be relocated to Dzaleka Refugee Camp. Those arrested include women and children.

Later on, the Malawi Human Rights Commission told local media that it is investigating allegations that the police beat the refugees and subjected children to harsh prison conditions as part of their relocation exercise. The Commission called upon the police and other law enforcement agencies to uphold the respect for human rights in all their actions.

Later that day, Ng’oma backed the relocation exercise in an interview he had with local media during a Malawi Congress Party rally in Blantyre. He said many people are misunderstanding the relocation – perceiving it as an infringement of rights, when it’s enforcement of the law, which requires that all refugees must live at Dzaleka Refugee Camp. He said that those who aren’t there are living illegally and depriving Malawians of economic opportunities.

He added that, as long as he is the Minister of Homeland Security, he will enforce refugees’ relocation to ensure that Malawi’s economy becomes stabilized again.

In other news…

On Saturday the 13th, a fuel tanker caught fire in Salima district at the turn-off. The tanker had diesel on board, but it was not clear where the commodity was being transported.

Eyewitnesses said the fuel tanker overturned while trying to navigate a corner. Some people tried to steal the fuel and the police threw teargas to disperse them, but ended up causing an inferno.

The news was disheartening for most locals, as the country is still struggling with fuel shortage, and is only getting both petrol and diesel in small amounts. However, the government said this won’t go on for long.

On Friday the 12th, the Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority held a public engagement on fuel supply in Blantyre where Moses Kunkuyu, the Minister of Information, revealed that they have signed contracts with three new companies to ensure continuous fuel supply in Malawi. He said this will also ensure the country’s fuel reserves have enough stock.

Kunkuyu also said the government is engaging fuel suppliers so that Malawi makes fuel payments using the Malawi Kwacha to reduce the pressure on foreign exchange, which has been scarce for about a year now.

Malawi requires 1.7 million liters of fuel per day and a requirement of over 600 million Kwacha – or 600 thousand dollars – for annual fuel purchases.

The Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (or ESCOM) will launch the Token Identifier (or TID) project on the 1st of June. TID is an upgrade exercise for ESCOM’s electricity recharge token system, since the current software has expired.

are not upgraded by November: 2024

Another electricity supply body, Electricity Generation Company (or Egenco), is eyeing the upcoming annual meeting of the Association of Power Utilities of Africa (or APUA) as an opportunity to secure new investors in the country’s energy sector.

APUA brings together power and energy players from Africa and other continents to deliberate on issues affecting the energy sector.

Egenco is set to host the 57th APUA from the 3rd to the 9th of June in Lilongwe. William Liabunga, the CEO for Egenco, said the meeting will attract CEOs and technocrats from power utilities across Africa, giving Egenco the perfect opportunity to deliberate on ways to improve local power generation.

Influential Senior Chief Kaomba was arrested on allegations of fraud.

e Spokesperson, said in March: 2022

Kachikho confirmed that they had arrested Senior Chief Kaomba and two others – Joseph Kaunda and Levison Makombe – who are believed to be his accomplices.

The three will appear in court soon and are currently out on bail.

One of the country’s network providers has updated its brand, and it trended on social media.

On Monday the 15th, Airtel Malawi announced that they had replaced their tagline “The Smartphone Network” with “A Reason To Imagine” during an event held in Lilongwe. This comes thirteen years after the taglines’ introduction.

Charles Kamoto, Airtel’s Managing Director, said their old tagline does not resonate anymore as it was synonymous with the company’s objectives, which they have now achieved. Their new tagline is youth-focused and aims to inspire the youth to realize their potential.

Furthermore, this rebrand adds to Airtel’s ongoing campaign “Zili Mwa Ife” or It is in us” which has been showcasing local heroes with extraordinary community-based initiatives.

Speaking of entrepreneurs, controversial prophet and entrepreneur, Shepherd Bushiri, is once again making headlines.

On Tuesday the 16th, a video of Bushiri inspecting Goshen Farm started circulating. Goshen Farm is a subsidiary of Goshen City, which will be Malawi’s first smart city. In the video, Bushiri says he is impressed with the progress at the Mchinji-based farm and goes on to show off his acres.

A press statement signed by Ephraim Nyondo, Bushiri’s Spokesperson, said the farm is expected to produce about ten thousand metric tonnes of maize. He said this aids their vision to make Goshen a self-sustaining ecosystem that creates jobs and supports the country’s economy.

Reports say people may be able to visit Goshen City this December.

A crime involving alleged teens shocked many locals.

On Tuesday the 16th, reports said that ten students from Balaka Islamic Boys Secondary School were arrested for allegedly gang-raping a twenty-seven-year-old woman in the district and stealing 7,500 Kwacha, about seven dollars, from her.

Mphatso Munthali, the Deputy Police Publicist for Balaka, said the incident happened on Saturday the 13th outside the school premises when the victim was coming from the market. Munthali said the victim identified the ten suspects after the police paraded them before her, leading to their arrests. He declined to disclose the students’ identities to protect them, leading some locals to believe they are minors.

Munthali said the ten will appear before court soon.

Aaaaand that’s it for this week! We are a few people trying to share knowledge, with no ads, and no screens. Support us so we can keep doing what we love. Check the link in our show notes to support us.

Pitani bwino!