MALAWI: Minister Patridge Calls For Performance-Oriented Ministry

By Smile Hamilton, Malawi

Newly sworn-in Minister of Industrialisation, Business, Trade and Tourism, George Patridge, has called for a performance-driven Ministry to ensure Malawians begin to see the meaningful change they have long desired.

Speaking in Lilongwe during a ministerial briefing with senior management, Patridge did not mince words.

“Expectations are many out there. Malawians need to see change. The private sector wants to see change, but for that to happen, we need to change the way we do things. We need a results- and output-based approach in our operations, set measurable targets, and work within timelines toward realising MW2063,” he said.

The Minister, who was welcomed by the Secretary for Industrialisation, Business, Trade and Tourism, Wiskes Nkombezi, said the deliberate emphasis in renaming the Ministry by His Excellency Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika clearly signifies its pivotal role in driving Malawi’s economic growth through industrialisation. He urged all officers in the Ministry to hit the ground running.

Reacting to a PowerPoint presentation by management, Patridge said he was impressed with the briefing but questioned why the outlined efforts were not producing visible results on the ground and in the lives of Malawians.

“Our duty is to ensure that Malawi deals with the four Fs: food, forex, fuel, and fertiliser by, among others, creating an enabling environment for the private sector to thrive; both for existing industries and exporters as well as new ones, so that there can be more production. And I’m counting on each one of you here to help me achieve that,” he emphasised.

The Minister further challenged management, saying that, coming from the private sector himself, he is open to new ideas without fear of retribution — signalling a clear message of an open-door policy in the Ministry.