By Mcloyd Chilangiza:
The European Union (EU) has urged the government to leverage the tourism sector under the Agriculture, Tourism, Mining and Manufacturing strategy to boost foreign exchange inflows.
EU Ambassador to Malawi Daniel Aristi Gaztelumendi made the call during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the EU delegation and Mzuzu University to promote ecotourism.
The agreement was signed under the £8 million (K16.8 billion) Tikope Alendo ndi Zachilengedwe M’Malawi (Taza) ecotourism programme.
Gaztelumendi said the partnership would help promote Malawi as a tourism destination, support SMEs through grants and improve skills in the sector.
He said the EU was investing in agriculture, energy and manufacturing to support economic recovery amid foreign exchange shortages and electricity blackouts.
“For example, we are supporting the agricultural sector very much, which is another way of generating forex. We are supporting the electricity generation and transmission sector as well, including through the hydropower station.
“We have also funded Malawi and Mozambique, which means that the electricity generated through Mpatamanga can then be exported to Mozambique and the whole of the Sadc power [pool],” he said.
Mzuzu University Vice Chancellor Wales Singini said the agreement would promote ecotourism through research, innovation and capacity building for SMEs.
He said the initiative would help develop solutions to attract more tourists to Malawi.
“The university is going to establish a research centre for ecotourism, champion innovation and capacity building, both for the SMEs as well as staff.
“So we believe that through the project, we’re going to develop solutions,” Singini said.
Jean Munyenyembe, Principal Secretary for Tourism in the Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade, Business and Tourism, said the country was attracting relatively few international visitors and faced accessibility challenges to tourism destinations.
She said the National Ecotourism Strategy aimed to address the challenges hindering the sector’s growth.
“There is a relatively low number of international visitors, and there are substantial challenges in terms of accessibility to most of the protected areas across the country,” she said.
So far, the EU’s bilateral envelope for Malawi stands at £497 million (about K1 trillion).
The EU has also launched a £143 million funding package under the NDICI-Global Europe instrument to support agriculture, energy and youth empowerment.
The World Travel and Tourism Council Economic Impact Research for 2026 shows that Malawi’s travel and tourism sector increased its contribution to the economy by 23.3 per cent between 2019 and 2025, reaching K1.6 trillion.
National Statistical Office figures show that Malawi imports goods worth $3 billion against export earnings of $1 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of