Malawi has faced economic stagnation since former pastor Chakwera was elected in 2020. A devastating cyclone and a regional drought, both linked to climate change, have wiped out crops and worsened hardship. Inflation has been above 20% for more than three years. Nearly three-quarters of Malawians live below the World Bank’s poverty line of $3 a day. Around half the population does not get the minimum number of calories needed for adequate nutrition, according to the bank’s estimates.Malawi voted on Tuesday in what is expected to be a close race between President Lazarus Chakwera and his predecessor Peter Mutharika, with a cost-of-living crisis and food shortages key issues for one of the world’s poorest countries. Another 15 candidates, including former President Joyce Banda, are also contesting the presidency of the landlocked southern African state, which lies mostly along the shores of a freshwater lake making up a fifth of its territory. Do you think that Malawi economic crisis can be attributed to lack of political goodwill to make a change ?
