Malawi - Country Economic Memorandum : Seizing Opportunities for Growth through Regional Integration and Trade - Summary of Main Finding and Recommendations

Abstract

Malawi needs to focus on exports to
 maintain and broaden its current inspiring levels of
 economic growth. The focus of future policy should therefore
 be on reforms that improve competitiveness in global and
 regional markets. This does not require a fundamental shift
 in direction, but instead a rebalancing of policy and
 expenditures to support an outward-oriented development
 framework. Until the recent global financial crisis,
 domestic and regional trends were promising for Malawi:
 rapid economic growth, strong donor support, increases in
 foreign direct investment, real potential to upgrade
 regional infrastructure, and the gradual dismantling of
 barriers within the region through the Common Market for
 Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Southern Africa
 Development Community (SADC) free trade areas. Despite
 recent global developments, this report makes the case that,
 for a small landlocked economy like Malawi, integration into
 a dynamic and more open Southern Africa region will remain a
 key to building prosperity and improving livelihoods.