Malawi Tobacco Commission slammed for mismanagement

Unbudgeted travel and communication expenses, complacency towards the Optima group and neglect of its reforestation mission are among the grievances attributed to the Tobacco Commission, which is in charge of tobacco issues in Malawi. So many abuses that question Malawi's intentions regarding tobacco and its cultivation, a few weeks after the country ratified the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

A public agency created as an extension of the Tobacco Act of 2014 to regulate the cultivation and sale of tobacco, the Tobacco Commission of Malawi is today in the hot seat. An audit commissioned by the Board of Commissioners has indeed highlighted serious overruns of the budget allocated to its missions, as well as other misconducts; the total damage would reach nearly 500 million kwacha (22.5 million euros)[1].

Budget overruns and cronyism in Malawi

Several types of irregularities were identified by the audit[2] : budget overruns, favors granted to Optima Group - a partner of RJ Reynolds (British American Tobacco)[3] - and the management of the reforestation mission.

Budget overruns are numerous and of all kinds. International promotional trips show a deficit of 341 %, notably due to a trip to China and gifts offered to Chinese officials. Statutory international business class trips also violated the rules of a government circular on air travel. The communication budget shows a deficit of 204 %, accentuated by a contract with the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), the remuneration of journalists and the organization of meetings. The management of the vehicle fleet is also called into question.

The Tobacco Commission is also accused of having granted an advance on revenue at a preferential rate (80 % instead of 70 %) to Optima Group, in contradiction with the instructions of the Treasury Secretariat. Also in violation of these instructions, Platinum Events, a subsidiary of Optima Group, also received advance payments for the purchase of golf clothing. According to the audit, the Tobacco Commission did not fulfill its reforestation mission by collecting only half of the required sums (4.4 million kwacha, or 198,000 euros, instead of 8 million kwacha, or 360,000 euros) from all the manufacturers concerned and by managing them without having established guidelines on reforestation.

In the end, the audit found that 40 out of 72 budget items were overspent. It called for better compliance with the budgets allocated to the Tobacco Commission, strict adherence to the instructions of the Treasury Secretariat and the establishment of a policy governing the purchase of gifts for foreign or local interlocutors.

Tobacco Commission's attitude favourable to the tobacco industry

These various failings of the Tobacco Commission raise many questions. They give the impression of a state body that is not subject to controls and has little respect for the rules and its missions. Its proximity to the tobacco industry also raises questions about the real intentions of the Malawi government, which had declared that it wanted gradually extract of tobacco cultivation and ratified On 18 August 2023, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (CCLAT). Increased production of tobacco leaves (+55 % in 2022, after a low year in 2021 due to lack of credits for the purchase of fertilizers and fuel)[4] and a tobacco cultivation development partnership in Zambia[5] cast doubt on a real desire to exit the tobacco economy. 70 % of its resources still coming from tobacco cultivation, Malawi's attitude during the Conference of the Parties (COP10) of the FCTC will be particularly observed by public health actors.

For more information on the situation in Malawi, see our decryption.

Keywords: Malawi, Tobacco Commission, budget overruns, Optima Group, COP10.

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[1] Mkweu J, Audit finds funds abused at Tobacco Commission, The Times Group, published September 23, 2023, accessed September 27, 2023.

23/09/23.

[2] Mlanjira D, Tobacco Control audit exposes extravagant and stupendous financial irregularities, Nyasa Times, published September 24, 2023, accessed September 27, 2023.

[3] About Corporation, Optima Group, accessed September 27, 2023.

[4] Malawi records 55% increase in tobacco sales this season, Africa News, published August 13, 2023, accessed September 27, 2023.

[5] Kayo B, 'Government involvement in tobacco industry key', The Times Group, published September 20, 2023, accessed September 27, 2023.