British High Commissioner to Malawi Michael Nevin has said the country needs to undergo a radical overhaul of thinking, attitude and delivery if it is to transform and escape the ever-nagging poverty trap.<\/p>\n
Nevin spoke during celebrations to mark the birthday of Queen Elizabeth II in Lilongwe, Monday.<\/p>\n
He said the Public Sector Reforms Programme should not just proclaim that they are supportive of private sector development, trade and investment, but must enforce open competition and shun policy flip-flops and cosy relationship.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want a reform movement that we can see and feel, not just hear about. One that is concerned with the outcome, not just the process; public financial management that demonstrates it is delivering sustained improvement in the security and effectiveness of Malawi\u2019s finances,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Nevin said Malawi is at a critical juncture and the only way out is upping the pace.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnless there is a radical overhaul of thinking and delivery, we will remain dealing with overwhelming symptoms and not their causes, focusing on emergency care rather than promoting long-term health, wellbeing and economic transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the reforms being championed by government are a step in the right direction but he was quick to add that implementation is key.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want this government to succeed with their reform agenda, but delivery is the name of the game. Success will be measured in plans, which translates into impact. It means a vision and plan that fosters initiative and responsibility, weaning people of dependency and entitlement,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Getting into his strides, the diplomat urged for boldness of action and prioritising of areas, which can turn the country around, and getting the system to deliver.<\/p>\n
\u201cA reform movement does not talk about irrigation schemes but implements them, along with broader agricultural reform so that Malawians do not go hungry year\u2013 on year.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also bemoaned government\u2019s failure to take advantage of the Nacala Corridor.<\/p>\n
\u201cReformists ensure that the country is ready for the game changing advantages of the Nacala Corridor; overcoming bureaucratic inertia and vested interests. It is worrying that the railway is finished but Malawi does not yet have anything in place to take advantage of it,\u201dhe said.<\/p>\n
In his remarks, Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe who was guest of honour at the event stressed that the reforms will produce results soon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe might be seen to be slow with the reform process but we are committed as government but the hiccups are as a result of capacity and inadequate resources. I promise you that we will deliver,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
British High Commissioner to Malawi Michael Nevin has said the country needs to undergo a radical overhaul of thinking, attitude and delivery if it is to transform and escape the ever-nagging poverty trap. Nevin spoke during celebrations to mark the birthday of Queen Elizabeth II in Lilongwe, Monday. He said the Public Sector Reforms Programme […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4378,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4374","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4374"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4374\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4379,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4374\/revisions\/4379"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4378"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.times.mw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}