[civsoc-mw] In Malawi, Corruption Derails Development

[Tony Thontholani]

A May 2017 Economic Development Document for Malawi by the World Bank shows a gross national income of $320 per capita in 2016—one of the lowest in the world—and a per capita income growth of little more than 1.5 percent between 1995 and 2014, below the average of 2.8 percent for non-resource-rich African economies. According to the report, Malawi continues to lag behind when compared to its peers that are geographically and demographically similar and were at a similar stage of development in 1995.

The country has consequently witnessed high rates of migration, with the International Organization for Migration estimating that in 2014 alone, 106,115 members of its productive workforce left the country for places like South Africa in search of work and economic opportunities; another study by Afrobarometer in 2019 found that around half of the country’s productive population would have preferred to work outside the country.

An analysis of government accounts’ audit reports reveals that from 1995 to 2020, government funds have been lost after payment for government contracts were not carried out. In 2013, between April and September, 16 Malawian companies received illicit payments from the government totaling approximately $32 million for goods and services that were not delivered.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/05/21/how-corruption-derails-development-in-malawi/
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