The current state of Malawi

Below is an article that briefly describes what is going on in this place right now.  In short: no aid money and poor exports means no dollars which leads to no fuel, failing businesses, increasing prices, power outages, water shut offs, and most importantly, no tonic or minerals. Malawi is on the verge of paralysis (UNC transports fuel supply apparently dried up!). The fuel shortage doesn't just affect those with cars - it affects public transportation and transport of goods (no more tomatoes at the market?), for example. There are a variety of ways to get fuel: 1) Wait for hours at the petrol station (imagine sitting in the heat of the day for 6 hours to be told the fuel dried up). 2) pay someone to take your car or jerrycan and wait in line (however, it takes gas to find gas). 3) Forget the hassle and buy fuel on the black market sold at twice the price and you don't know what's in it.  Gas is already expensive at the pump (290MK/L = $7/gallon) so on the black market it is about $14/gallon!! And yes, the black market is actually a place - its a bunch of guys sketchily standing in the Game parking lot (they pay off the police) and they give a much better rate for the kwacha (220/$ vs 165/$, thats 5,500 more kwacha per $100).

Many of my friends have had their water shut off for 1 or more days at a time and no power. With it being the hot season, that's not good. It's still in the 80s-ish at night - without a fan it's difficult to sleep. I've started sleeping with a wet chitenje (cloth) draped over me to keep cool. I've also gained an appreciation for why people hate to use mosquito nets - its like sleeping in a un-airconditioned attic crawl space with no air circulation - I swear it increases the temperature by about 10 degrees.

The situation is probably not going to improve for another month+ since the president went on vacation to Australia (on Malawi's dime, according to the Nyasa times he requested or got $500,000?!). This isn't very promising for getting countries and banks to give aid money, which comprises about or more than 50% of the annual budget. I wouldn't be surprised if more demonstrations occurred.

Well, thank god my friend found some petrol... off to the lake this weekend it is! Hopefully we find gas to get back... or not, I wouldn't mind being stuck in Mangochi.

World Bank tells Malawi: Address concerns to get aid

The aid freeze started earlier this year with a diplomatic spat with Britain, Malawi’s biggest donor, caused by a leaked diplomatic cable that labelled Mutharika “autocratic and intolerant of criticism”.

Washington joined in after the July violence, suspending a $350m project to upgrade the impoverished, land-locked state’s decrepit electricity grid.

Combined with a collapse in revenues from tobacco, Malawi’s main foreign exchange earner, the aid embargo has triggered an acute dollar shortage, putting pressure on the kwacha currency and hitting imports of basics such as food and fuel.

Petrol stations are frequently dry, and when they do have fuel, motorists are forced to queue for hours to fill up.

The hardship in evidence on the streets is in stark contrast to the official statistics, which suggest which suggest that Malawi has been among the world’s fastest-growing economies in the last six years.

Much of that performance has been based on a fertiliser subsidy scheme for farmers, although the aid freeze has also thrown that programme into doubt.