Malawi, 2013

Allow me to congratulate

President Ashe on his election to preside over the

General Assembly at its sixty-eighth session. Let me

assure him of my full support and cooperation and

that of my Government during his tenure of office. His

credentials and experience as a career diplomat here at

the United Nations assure us of a successful session.

It is indeed an honour for me to have the

opportunity to address the Assembly once again. In my

maiden address last year, I spoke of the challenges that

Malawi faced at the time that I assumed the office of

the President of the Republic of Malawi. I outlined my

Government’s commitment to addressing the political

and economic governance problems that I inherited. I

sought to achieve macroeconomic stability and restore

the rule of law and the observance of human rights.

The reforms my Government has undertaken have

been painful but necessary. I am therefore pleased to

report to the Assembly that Malawi is registering a strong

economic recovery. For instance, foreign exchange and

fuel are available, the currency has stabilized, inflation

is declining, and industrial production is up from 30 per

cent in 2012 to 75 per cent in 2013. Economic growth is

forecast at 5 per cent this year, up from 1.8 per cent last

year. Furthermore, Malawians are once again enjoying

their freedoms and civil liberties, as enshrined in the

Constitution.

I am pleased to say that Malawi, the “warm heart

of Africa”, is warm again, and my Government is

committed to staying the course with these reforms.

In moving forward, my agenda is to build on the

foundations we have laid in order to realize sustainable

and inclusive growth.

Today we are gathered here to reflect on the

progress made on the Millennium Development Goals

(MDGs) and to debate the post-2015 development

agenda. Before I provide my reflections, I would like

to commend the Secretary-General for his efforts to

ensure an inclusive global debate on the post-2015

development agenda. As I understand it, more than

750,000 people from 194 countries provided their

views, indicating their readiness for bold change. I am

pleased that Malawi was one of the countries selected

for the national consultations.

I believe that in Malawi and beyond, the MDGs have

played an important role in concentrating our efforts

around the common purpose of eradicating poverty.

They have raised public awareness about unacceptable

levels of poverty and helped to mobilize action towards

a fairer world.

At the same time, the MDGs have provided a

common framework for monitoring progress and

highlighting areas of achievement as well as challenges.

Yes, they have transformed the way in which both

developing and developed countries approach

development cooperation.

Malawi is on track to achieve four of the eight

MDGs: reducing child mortality, combating HIV

and AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensuring

environmental sustainability, and developing a

global partnership for development. However, like

other countries, we are unlikely to meet the Goals of

eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving

universal access to education, ensuring gender equality

and the empowerment of women, and improving

maternal health.

As the deadline for the MDGs draws closer,

Malawi is stepping up its efforts to accelerate their

attainment. We have identified best practices as well as

bottlenecks in the context of our progress. In particular,

we have understood that gender inequality and lack of

empowerment of women are the common constraints

limiting our progress towards the MDGs. In response,

my Government has developed a new MDG acceleration

framework that places significance on removing these

barriers once and for all.

In building the foundations for the post-2015

architecture, I want to reflect on the lessons from

Malawi’s experience in the implementation of the

MDGs.

First, I believe that the strength of the MDGs lies

in the fact that they are focused and targeted. That

has helped us to narrow our focus and concentrate our

efforts on the most critical issues while allowing local

ownership. In the case of Malawi, the MDGs were

localized through the Malawi Growth and Development

Strategy.

Secondly, the past 13 years have taught us about the

importance of the linkages between these Goals. A poor

family is not just economically deprived. It is also likely

to face a host of other challenges such as environmental

vulnerability, abuses of human rights and lack of or

limited access to essential services. Lifting people out

of poverty therefore requires a holistic approach.

Thirdly, strong political will and the transformation

of partnerships have accelerated the attainment of most

of the MDG targets. Finally, I wish to make a cautionary

note that we need to be aware of the fact that different

continents were at different stages of development

when we established the MDGs. That created pressure,

sometimes leading to unintended consequences. In the

case of Malawi and other countries, in our efforts to

achieve universal access to education, the quality of

education was compromised, yet access and quality

should not be separated.

We all recognize that the task of developing and

achieving consensus on the theme “The post-2015

development agenda: setting the stage” may not be an

easy one. However, we know a lot more today about

what works and what does not work than we did 13

years ago. We know that in order to achieve real and

lasting change, we must be committed. We know that

in order to inspire and motivate action, we must be bold

and ambitious. We know that in order to maximize our

resources and talents, we need smart partnerships.

The report of the High-level Panel of Eminent

Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda

provides a strong foundation for a new framework.

I applaud in particular the overall vision of ending

extreme poverty by 2030. I also commend the focus

on, among other things, empowering girls and women,

creating jobs, sustainable livelihoods and equitable

growth and ensuring good governance and effective

institutions. I am aware that many people have argued

that the best strategy to achieve the MDGs is to realize

growth in the gross domestic product. However, I

am of the view that that idea is premised on a top-

down-approach. In my opinion, it is income for poor

households that must come first. The issues that affect

population growth — malnutrition, girls’ access to

education, maternal health — are all rooted in poverty

and, particularly, in a lack of income at the household

level. If we have to overcome those challenges, we need

to promote policies and programmes that bring decent

incomes into households.

In that regard, my Government has sought new

partnerships with the private sector, local communities

and development partners in order to deliver

development in more innovative ways. My Government

is focused on transforming rural economies and

breaking the vicious cycle of underdevelopment and

poverty. We have decided to invest in improving the

livelihoods of poor people in rural and urban areas.

That transformation initiative is aimed at modernizing

our rural communities by bringing a standard package

of interventions in health, education, water, sanitation

and housing.

The Government has also rolled out the Malawi

Rural Electrification Programme, which aims at

spurring industry, trade and agricultural productivity

through the provision of electricity. The Government is

also implementing a community saving and investment

programme to promote a culture of saving and building

assets to enhance income and wealth creation. I see

that leading to the majority of the poor being active

participants in our economy.

If we cannot uplift the people that live in rural

areas, as is the case in many developing countries, so

that they can earn a decent income in the household,

the vicious cycle of population growth, malnutrition,

maternal risks and poverty will remain. If the post-2015

development agenda is to realize its dream, we need to

go to the grass roots, where the people are.

For that reason, I welcome the idea that under

the post-2015 development agenda, we should track

progress against our goals by looking at them across all

levels of income. That will drive equal opportunities for

people across all income groups and help us realize our

dreams of shared prosperity. That is key to restoring the

dignity of all our people.

Finally, let me emphasize the need to attain global

peace and security. We are all aware that conflict,

instability and civil unrest disrupt our development

efforts. As we look forward to the post-2015 agenda,

we should recommit to global peace and security. As a

mother and grandmother, I felt compelled to make this

appeal.

Malawi will continue to engage fully in the post-

2015 development agenda. I am hopeful that the voice

of the poor, of women, of people with disabilities and

of the marginalized will be included in the agenda. I am

optimistic about a world of shared prosperity.