Malawi’s new long-term national development plan, Malawi 2063, is set for an official launch on January 19 2021 in Lilongwe, National Planning Commission (NPC) has said.
The imminent launch follows the completion of nation-wide consultations that NPC launched in February 2020 during which citizens were asked what should be incorporated in the development blueprint.
The launch also follows an endorsement by a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Lazarus Chakwera at Kamuzu Palace recently, according to NPC director general Thomas Munthali.
He said in an interview yesterday that the Malawi 2063 will focus on getting things done while drawing lessons from the Vision 2020 national plan that has expired.
Said Munthali: “The document will be launched on 19th January 2021 at the Bingu International Convention Centre and President Lazarus Chakwera and Vice-President Saulos Chilima are both expected to grace the event.”
He explained that stakeholders, led by NPC, have decided to change the name of the Vision 2020 successor from National Transformation 2063 to Malawi 2063, adding the aim is to ensure continuity of development programmes beyond a political regime.
Munthali added: “We will have a 10-year implementation plan whose focus will be to make the country attain a middle-income status by 2030. We will also have five-year plans for ‘quick wins’ that will lay a solid foundation for inclusive wealth creation and self-reliance.”
He said NPC and other stakeholders will ensure that all lessons learnt in the Vision 2020 implementation should inform better implementation of the Malawi 2063.
During the launch of the Malawi 2063 consultations, NPC chairperson Richard Mkandawire said the commission does not have a magic wand to develop an effective long-term plan for Malawians but the answers to Malawi’s development lie with each and every Malawian.
He said: “We, as a people collectively, have to think positively and innovatively to achieve the development that we aspire.”
NPC has two main mandates, namely to develop long and medium-term development plans based on the country’s comparative advantages and resource potential, as well as to coordinate or oversee implementation of those plans.
A comprehensive review exercise of the Vision 2020 validated in November 2019 in Lilongwe revealed that despite the country making progress on some indicators during the implementation period, the country failed to meet most key targets with the performance rated below the world’s average, in some instances.
