7 arrested over Kuti Forest Reserve arson and theft

* One of the poachers, who was chased out of the reserve was found floating dead in the waters of Kuti dam * Postmortem results conducted at Salima District Hospital established that the deceased died from suffocation secondary to drowning By Pickson Chipeso, Malawi News Agency & Duncan Mlanjira, Maravi Express  Police in Salima have arrested seven people for allegedly setting fire to five tourism hospitality structures at Kuti Forest Reserve and stealing laptops, mattresses, cash and other household…

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Mzuzu City residents support Mayor Chiyembekezo Glyn Moses in enforcement of sanitation

* After arresting a resident found carelessly disposing sugarcane piths in public spaces * A common irritant habit practised by Malawians throughout the country By Duncan Mlanjira Malawians have this tendency of buying food in the streets and eating it as they continue with their business and carelessly throwing away the food’s waste around city streets. Mzuzu City Mayor, Chiyembekezo Glyn Moses, who is on a campaign to keep his territory clean, has received profound support after arresting a…

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‘Can Malawi build a US$1.5 billion Mpatamanga hydropower project without fixing the forex problem?’

* Mpatamanga could transform Malawi’s electricity supply — but a project can be technically brilliant, environmentally ambitious and internationally supported * And still struggle if the economics underneath it do not work—environmentalist Ian Bartlett By Duncan Mlanjira When completed Mpatamanga hydropower project would certainly transform Malawi’s electricity supply, maintains environmentalist, Ian Bartlett, who is particularly interested in the development as he is directly affected by it. His Mpatamanga Wildlife Ranch sits within the hydropower project’s footprint and he stresses…

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DoDMA unveils K488 billion national El Niño Preparedness Plan

* K163.7 billion (US$94.4 million) has been mobilised through existing projects run by government, development partners and NGOs * That leaves a gap of K324.8 billion (US$187.3 million) — the shortfall that Chief Secretary, Justin Saidi highlighted on September 10, when he urged the private sector to support By Frank Humphreys, Malawi News Agency (MANA) The Department of Disaster & Management Affairs (DoDMA) has unveiled K488 billion (US$281.7 million) national El Niño Preparedness Plan to protect millions of people…

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‘Malawians deserve more than a staged Presidential Scorecard’

* The interview may have given Malawians the President’s assessment of his first year * What it did not adequately provide was the rigorous examination of that assessment that citizens deserve * The harder questions remain, and Malawi deserves answers—economist and accountable governance advocate, Dr James Kadyampakeni By Duncan Mlanjira Canada-based Malawian economist and accountable governance advocate, Dr. James Kadyampakeni, has described President Arthur Peter Mutharika’s exclusive interview with MBC TV as a “staged Presidential Scorecard of his first…

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Critical spare part EGENCO sent to South Africa for repairs back to restore 20MW lost off the grid through Nkula B Unit 6

* Expected to be completed by end of this October when the unit is scheduled to return to service * The Unit has remained on forced outage to facilitate the replacement of worn-out thrust bearing pads and corrective maintenance on the turbine assembly By Duncan Mlanjira Electricity Generation Company (EGENCO) has finally secured the critical shaft Nkula B Hydropower Station’s Unit 6 — which it sent to the original equipment manufacturer’s workshop in South Africa for repairs in August…

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MHC’s new housing drive rests on three pillars; urban renewal, partnerships and transparency

* At it also highlights a shift in enforcement from announcing projects to engaging communities first * Citing the Malangalanga Area 1 redevelopment project where MHC engaged property owners by offering compensation and house swaps * Instead of issuing eviction notices, resulting in broad support for the project By Duncan Mlanjira Malawi Housing Corporation (MHC) Chief Executive Officer, Bob Chimkango, maintains that the institution’s new direction rests on three pillars: urban renewal, partnerships with investors & developers, and transparency…

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Very deafening silence from Tourism Ministry’s over vandalised-to-the-ground Kuti Wildlife Reserve in Salima

* At a time when Malawi is struggling to promote tourism and earn much-needed forex, it’s heartbreaking to see Kuti Wildlife Reserve in Salima torched by the villagers * This is what it looks like when criminals don’t face consequences for their actions — they take it further and further * The sad part is that the place got burned two days after this year’s commemoration of World Tourism Day, which marked the National Tourism Month By Duncan Mlanjira…

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High cost of rampant vandalism of public infrastructure rears its ugly face as Blantyre City taps run dry for three days

The affected pipeline * Following attempted vandalism of main transmission pipeline from Walkers Ferry Pumping Station to Chileka * Whose chamber (pipe interconnection point) got burst that resulted in huge volumes of water gushing out * Vandalism and other malpractices affects water supply causing significant financial losses to Blantyre Water Board * As BWB collaborates with Malawi Police Service to sensitise the public on the repercussions of the vice By Duncan Mlanjira Blantyre Water Board (BWB) has finally repaired…

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One year of Mutharika’s Administration: Have we come full circle?

* One year into its mandate, the President owes Malawians more than political rhetoric — he owes them answers * Because when the lights go out, the fuel disappears, corruption cases disappear, parliamentary oversight becomes contested and public confidence begins to disappear with them, ordinary Malawians are left asking one simple question: * Who is actually in charge — and who will rescue us from this cycle? By Dr. James Kadyampakeni When I wrote about the Democratic Progressive Party…

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