Malawi - Agricultural SectorMalawi - Agricultural Sector
Overview
Agriculture anchors Malawi’s economy, directly accounting for about one third of gross domestic product. Agriculture significantly contributes to employment, economic growth, export earnings, poverty reduction, food security, and nutrition. Turning the country’s agriculture sector into an engine of growth is a major development goal for Malawi.
Agriculture is the sector in which Malawi competes most successfully in international markets. While maize has been the major food crop in terms of the policy agenda and hectarage planted, tobacco has been, and continues to be, the dominant cash crop in the economy accounting for approximately 58% of the country’s total export earnings. Other important crops include dried legumes, sugar, tea, cotton, and nuts. Agricultural diversification is important for Malawi. U.S. goods or technical knowledge that could be adapted in a cost-effective manner to Malawi's agricultural conditions and boost the quality, quantity, or diversity of crops might find a profitable market.
2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 (Estimated) | |
Total Local Production (USD) | 784,914,893 | 919,034,226 | 843,973,901 | 899,341,095 |
Total Exports (USD) | 467,130,804 | 432,498,254 | 590,835,834 | 585,501,231 |
Total Imports (USD) | 473,582,000.00 | 495,752,000.00 | 492,187,000.00 | 407,309,000.00 |
Imports from the US | 2,269,000.00 | 4,617,000.00 | 17,694,000.00 | 18,975,000.00 |
Total Market Size (USD) | 791,366,089 | 982,287,972 | 745,325,067 | 721,148,864 |
Exchange Rates | MK470/USD | MK672/USD | MK728/USD | MK730/USD |
Leading Sub-Sectors
Leading Sub-sectors in the agriculture industry in Malawi include crop farming, livestock production, and agro-processing. Malawi’s desire to move away from reliance on rain-fed agriculture has also opened up opportunities for irrigation farming. These opportunities include irrigation equipment, irrigation infrastructure development, and irrigation technology development.Opportunities also exist in agro-processing, including cotton ginning and spinning, textile and garment manufacturing, fruit processing, beef and dairy processing, leather processing, oil seed production, and production of sugar cane products.
Opportunities
There are various investment opportunities in agriculture, including livestock production (for dairy and beef), aquaculture, horticulture, agro-processing, sugar, soy bean, cow peas, piggery, honey production, integrated cotton development, cassava production, and mushroom growing. These agricultural products can be processed and exported under trading arrangements encompassing SADC, COMESA, and GSP SCHEME of the EU’s EBA Initiative, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), China General Tariff Preferential Treatment, the India Preferential Trade Arrangement, and the Japan Preferential Trade Arrangement.Opportunities for investment in irrigation also exist in Malawi’s still largely rain-fed agricultural sector. Horticultural products such as vegetables, flowers, fruits, and rice can be grown using surface, gravity, pump, river diversion, or sprinkler irrigation systems. There is also great potential for U.S. agricultural products, equipment, processing machinery, and packaging.
Web Resources
- Malawi Investment and Trade Center
- Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry
- IGuide Malawi