Resource information
Malawi needs to focus on exports to
maintain and broaden its current inspiring levels of
economic growth. The focus of future policy should therefore
be on reforms that improve competitiveness in global and
regional markets. This does not require a fundamental shift
in direction, but instead a rebalancing of policy and
expenditures to support an outward-oriented development
framework. Until the recent global financial crisis,
domestic and regional trends were promising for Malawi:
rapid economic growth, strong donor support, increases in
foreign direct investment, real potential to upgrade
regional infrastructure, and the gradual dismantling of
barriers within the region through the Common Market for
Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Southern Africa
Development Community (SADC) free trade areas. Despite
recent global developments, this report makes the case that,
for a small landlocked economy like Malawi, integration into
a dynamic and more open Southern Africa region will remain a
key to building prosperity and improving livelihoods.
