Malawi to borrow $10 million from Botswana

Botswana has offered to give Malawi a soft loan of $10 million (about K4 billion) towards agriculture and health sectors, the State House Press Office announced on Monday.

In a statement, the State House said the governments of Malawi and Botswana have committed to sharing resources and expertise in a number of areas.

President Joyce Banda, en route to the United States of America from the United Kingdom (UK), was in Botswana on Monday where she met her counterpart, President Seretse Khama Ian Khama.

In the statement, presidential press secretary Steven Nhlane said the loan would also help the country improve the country’s fuel situation.

Reads the statement in part: “The commitments were made during bilateral talks between Her Excellency Dr Joyce Banda and her Botswana counterpart Lt General Seretse Khama Ian Khama and their officials in Gaborone.

“The two governments, which have a Joint Permanent Commission of Cooperation [JPCC], also agreed to fast-track private sector engagement and establish an investment and promotion protection agreement to expedite provision of the credit lines.”

Nhlane said Khama also announced a donation of 150 cows to Malawi for the newly launched ‘A Cow A Family’ project which has so far rolled out in the South and Central regions.

Botswana, reads the statement, also committed to sharing experiences and expertise to Malawi by providing training to Malawi in areas of tourism, wildlife and mining.

Khama also said his government would import beans and other legumes from Malawi. He said Botswana would assess how much of the products his government would like to buy.

The State House said Banda, on a two-day State visit in Botswana, would this Tuesday, jointly with Khama, open a Poverty Eradication Initiative Symposium in Maun, some 600 kilometres north of the capital Gaborone.