Economist Gilbert Kachamba says Cyclone Freddy will affect the country’s development aspirations as espoused in the Malawi 2063.

In an interview, Kachamba said this is because the recovery from the damage caused by the cyclone will cost the economy much.

Such Cyclone Freddy devastation will impact on GDP

He said: “Cyclone Freddy has affected the country’s development aspirations in so many ways. Some people have lost the means of earning a living, infrastructure has been heavily damaged and needs urgent rebuilding which will cost the nation some fortune.

“The damage was just too much and way beyond the expectations. And recovery will cost us much hence the negative effect on the development aspirations.”

The MW2063 seeks to transform Malawi into a wealthy and self-reliant industrialised upper middle-income country by 2063.

The blue print also projects that if the economy grows at an annual average rate of six percent, Malawi could attain the low-middle-income status by 2030, with a per capita income of between $1 006 (about K1 million) and $3 955 9 (about K4 million).

However, the National Planning Commission (NPC) said the Malawi 2063 first 10-Year Implementation Plan (MIP-1) targets are still attainable despite the negative impact of Cyclone Freddy on the economy.

In his analysis Wither MIP-1 Implementation with this Cyclone Freddy last week, NPC director general Thomas Chataghalala Munthali said in the formulation of the Malawi 2063 and MIP-1, it was clearly recognised that various challenges and risks will be experienced, hence the need to include mitigation measures in all our planning and implementation.

He said: “Disasters and other shocks are part of life and Malawi will continue to face them going forward. What will make the difference is how prepared we are for such calamities as that is what determines how we respond to and recover from their effects.

“This is an aspect that has been thoroughly articulated in the MW2063 and MIP-1.”

In the MIP-1, Malawi targets to graduate into a middle-income economy and achieve most Sustainable Development Goals targets by 2030 by implementing key things enshrined in the countr y ’ s med ium- term development plan.

This is to be attained through investments and key policy interventions in megafarms, mining and tourism coupled with urgent restoration of generation capacity in electricity and macro-economic stability.

In 2023, Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs projected the growth rate at 2.7 percent on account of improved supply of electricity and favourable weather conditions.

However, due to the negative impacts of Tropical Cyclone Freddy, Reserve Bank of Malawi Governor Wilson Banda said domestic real gross domestic product projection will be revised to incorporate effects of Tropical Cyclone Freddy.

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