‘Malawi should remain priority for overseas aid’
Malawi goes to the polls for parliamentary and presidential elections tomorrow with fears a contested result will lead to a repeat of 2004 protests.
Election promises have focused on persistent corruption which has overshadowed the electoral register and spending on infrastructure projects.
However, launching its Malawi report yesterday the Oireachtas committee on Foreign Affairs said it was happy millions of euro in support funds were going to good causes.
Between 2002 and 2007 the Government spent €27m in Malawi and this year, despite budget cuts, €10m will pass through Irish Aid projects.
“Malawi has made some positive progress towards improving living standards and eliminating extreme poverty with the money allocated by Irish Aid. However, smaller scale corruption is still prevalent in almost 50% of small transactions,” it said.
Chairman of the committee, Dr Michael Woods, said after examining the money spent it still believed Irish Aid should continue to direct more than one fifth of its aid budget to Malawi.
But he said international donors should pay close attention to the outcome of tomorrow’s election.
“As budgetary pressure has meant a reduction in the Irish overseas aid budget, we must ensure that there is proper prioritisation and that correct spending controls are in place when Irish taxpayers’ money is being spent.
“This week Malawi holds a general election, an election which is crucial to the country’s prospects. Free and fair elections resulting in a transparent political system are vital for Malawi’s development,” Dr Woods said.
