Malawi poor, not poorest-govt
Information Minister Kondwani Nankhumwa yesterday admitted that Malawi is a poor country, but not the poorest in the world, trashing a recent report purportedly published by the World Bank indicating that Malawi ranks top of poorest states in the world.
Said Nankhumwa: “We are poor, but not the poorest and we believe the media, especially business journalists have a very crucial task of interpreting data that will be used for investors and tourists to make informed decisions before they come here to Malawi.”
Speaking during a press conference at the Central Office of Information, Nankhumwa, flanked by presidential chief adviser on economic affairs Collins Magalasi and chief adviser on communication and strategy Bright Malopa, said it was imperative for the local media to critically distinguish between gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in current dollar terms and GDP per capita on purchasing power parity (PPP) basis before concluding that Malawi is poorest as reported online.
He said the report in question confuses GDP per capita and GDP in PPP terms .
The minister said the current administration is now concentrating on implementing policies that are designed towards increasing income levels among rural dwellers and enhancing agriculture productivity per unit of land as a way of eradicating poverty.
Said Nankhumwa: “Growth rate between 7.5 percent and 10 percent could be ideal in this case to lower poverty levels in the country.”
He said in the long term, government intends to transform the country from an importing to a producing and manufacturing nation.
Nankhumwa also said government is investing hugely in energy and also hopes to improve access to finance by small business operators which, he said, would see the cost of doing business in Malawi easing.
Looking ahead, Nankhumwa said his ministry will, through the Association of Business Journalists (ABJ), roll out a training session to familiarise journalists with economic jargon for easy interpretation of economic data.
Taking his turn, Magalasi described poverty measure as a relative process which is broad. But he said overall Malawi is doing fine on education, child mortality and maternal mortality as stipulated in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
So you now want to be The Poorest?
“…poor, but not the poorest”? To many Malawians, that’s a distinction without a difference! Mxii!
The point is, the GDP figures have decreased from a higher number, to something below other poor African states’ figures… No amount of talking can change that, unless the numbers are wrong. That does not seem to be what govt is saying.
the question is ,how do you measure poverty,if the world says we are poor then we are poor according to there measurement,but are you rich?living in a rich country?