President Lazarus Chakwera yesterday left for China on his lastest foreign trip this year amid concerns that his frequent travels are draining the public purse as well as exerting pressure on low forex reserves.

But the Malawi Government has justified the trips, saying the benefits accrued far outweigh the costs.

Prior to his departure at Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe, the President said he will utilise the visit to China, where he is attending the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo (Caete) from June 29 2023 to July 2 2023, to negotiate for debt relief from the bilateral agreements made in the past.

He told journalists that once debt levels come down, the country will stand a chance to qualify for the Extended Credit Facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The President has made similar appeals for debt relief before to various creditors, including the IMF.

Records show that between September 22 2020 and December 19 2022, Chakwera made about 27 international trips to 17 countries in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and the United States of America, accumulating into 127 days abroad.

He stayed the longest at the United Nations General Assembly 25 days via Kenya.

In a telephone interview, Minister of Information and Digitisation Moses Kunkuyu said the public needs to pay attention to what government is bringing from such trips.

The minister, who is also government spokesperson, said the Chinese Government invited Chakwera and has chartered a plane for him and his entourage besides paying for other expenses.

Said Kunkuyu: “Over 200 Malawians will participate at this event with the highest number coming from the private sector.

“The participation of Malawi at this very important gathering will not only open up more cooperating avenues for the country but also re-register Malawi as a global player that needs not be left behind by the fast moving global economic train.”

On the exact number of those travelling on government tickets, he said he would only be able to provide such information after consolidating the lists from various offices and institutions, both private and public.

From Lilongwe, Chakwera was seen boarding a Kenya Airways aircraft and his press secretary Anthony Kasunda told Malawi Broadcasting Corporation that the President and his delegation will connect to a charter plane in Nairobi, Kenya.

In a separate interview, governance expert Mavuto Bamusi indicated that even for fully sponsored trips not all expenses for the presidential delegation are covered.

He said sponsors impose limits and conditions and that taxpayers will still shoulder ancillary costs associated with such trips.

Bamusi, who worked as an aide to former president Peter Mutharika, said the frequency of such trips have short-term implications on fiscal policy as they translate to a drain on already budgeted funds and also squeeze out forex.

He said: “The presidency needs to delegate some foreign trips which can even be handled by technocrats. Secondly, the President can increasingly utilise online communication platforms to undertake high-level online conferences and meetings as he sometimes has done.”

The Third Caete, under the theme ‘Common development for a shared future’, will be held in Changsha, Hunan, China.

The Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China said in a statement the forum is expected to build a new mechanism for China-Africa economic and trade cooperation.

The post Chakwera off to China amid foreign trips’ concerns first appeared on The Nation Online.