Malawi Industry Urges Swift AfCFTA Implementation for Economic Growth

Key Business Points:

• Malawi must accelerate AfCFTA domestication by improving trade infrastructure like border posts and single-window systems
• Customs officials and SMEs need urgent training on AfCFTA rules to boost exports and reduce trade deficits
• Expanding Simplified Trade Regimes and targeting processed goods for regional markets could grow Malawi’s intra-African business

Malawi’s business community faces a critical juncture as the country seeks to leverage the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) for stronger economic growth. The Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) has sounded the alarm on the urgent need to accelerate the domestication of AfCFTA policies, warning that Malawi’s current trade position remains fragile due to mounting challenges including a growing trade deficit, high inflation, and persistent foreign exchange shortages.

MCCCI Chief Executive Officer Daisy Kambalame stressed that key actors—particularly customs officials and small and medium enterprises (SMEs)—require targeted training on AfCFTA rules of origin and tariff systems. According to Kambalame, the Malawi Revenue Authority and GIZ are already running capacity-building programmes, but these need to be expanded and intensified to prepare businesses for the continental market. "There is a need to expand participation in the Guided Trade Initiative and actively take part in intra-African trade fairs," Kambalame said, urging businesses to target fast-moving opportunities in processed agricultural goods and light manufacturing for export to neighbouring countries.

On the infrastructure front, Kambalame highlighted the importance of completing One Stop Border Posts (OSBPs) and rolling out a National Electronic Single Window System to speed up trade processes and reduce bottlenecks at the borders. She noted that improving the ease of doing business—by streamlining licensing and ensuring reliable foreign exchange allocation for exporters—could help narrow Malawi’s trade deficit. Expanding Simplified Trade Regimes (STR) with neighbouring countries is also central to boosting intra-African exports and better positioning Malawi to benefit from the continent’s rising trade momentum.

These recommendations align with the latest findings from the Standard Bank Africa Trade Barometer, which shows growing adoption of AfCFTA across the continent. Awareness of AfCFTA now stands at 50%, with 59% of exporters already engaged in intra-African trade—signals of a strengthening continental market. In this environment, Malawi has a clear opportunity to ramp up participation and secure a greater share of regional commerce.

Economics Association of Malawi President Bertha Bangara added that actively pursuing bilateral trade agreements could open up new markets for local products, diversifying Malawi’s export base beyond its traditional commodities. On the policy front, the Ministry of Industrialisation, Business, Trade and Tourism’s Patrick Botha confirmed that Malawi has ratified AfCFTA and deposited all necessary instruments, and that new laws such as the Investment Act 2024 and the SME Act 2025 have been enacted to foster an enabling environment for AfCFTA. Botha said these reforms aim to "enhance operations of the AfCFTA and benefit from it."

Taken together, these developments underscore that Malawi’s ability to seize AfCFTA opportunities depends on decisive action in three areas: building robust trade infrastructure, empowering business actors with the knowledge to comply with and benefit from AfCFTA, and strategically pursuing bilateral and regional agreements. With AfCFTA bringing the promise of a single, liberalised market to 1.3 billion people, Malawi’s entrepreneurs and policymakers must move boldly to ensure the country captures this historic opportunity and achieves more resilient, inclusive, and diversified growth.

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