Some Development Issues and Debates

Gc matchaya, phd I think jb shd exercise care in accepting defectors lest she provides cover for hyenas who will work to bring her downfall . Presumably she was being supported by some dpp mps such as kalinde etc. those should be her first priority and then,she should seriously consider working with opposition as one way of encouraging politics of inclusion,. Those who have pledged their support already shud be considered seriously . In fact a government of national unity would be desirable. She should also seriously note that her strength and long term success are dependent on public opinion which itself is a function of people's perception of what she does. Things like bowing down to pressure from tribesmen to lead a tribal grouping are simply in discord with the tenets of survival in multiparty politics in a country with a myriad social fault lines. So should anyone for example approach her privately to try AND convince her that she is more of a certain tribe or religion ...

by Dr G C Matchaya When the news of the demise of the president Bingu wa Mutharika broke out, I was taken by surprise. I did not expect his death to come this soon and just soon after some prophets had predicted it to be very close. Of course the amazement did not last too long as I started pondering on the question of succession. Was it going to be the legitimate successor (the then VP JB) or was it going to be someone else? If it were to be someone else whom then would it be, the Speaker Chimunthu Banda or someone from outside those ranks? No matter how much I tried to think of other possibilities, I was convinced that the presidency was constitutionally JB’s. Now that all seems to be in order and JB has taken control of national affairs, it’s the appropriate time to congratulate her and wish her good luck. So Congratulation and good luck Madam President, this is not a simple achievement and neither is it a simple task. Madam President, you are inheriting this country at a time ...

I was shocked by the way events unfolded in my loved country (Malawi) yesterday. Order appeared to be slipping away and the country seemed to be treading toward some of social and political schizophrenia. Things were indeed falling apart and we were quickly losing the oneness and love that was heavily promoted in the past. I felt very angry, very upset and very resentful about all what was happening. I knew people were going to die and so some of them indeed died. We are with them in prayer and may their souls rest in peace. We also pray that the families left behind will have God’s protection and grace as we forge ahead. Some important questions about this is, how did come this far? Did we have to? How did we let this happen? Going forward, it is imperative that we do serious soul searching and leave all the blame games, concentrate on finding out the root causes of our problems at the moment, address them and forge forward. The issues of the rule of law, economic and social advanc...

"To win, we must endeavour to be the stronger of the two at the point of impact. Our only hope of this lies in making our own choice of operations, not in waiting passively for whatever the enemy chooses for us."—Schlieffen, the famous German General behind the Schlieffen plan the plan involved using 90 pct of german forces to quickly defeat france and then turn them to russia.This plan would prevent any two-front war

Dr Greenwell C Matchaya It is a hazy Sunday morning, the neighbourhood is still quite and although I have no intention of going out just yet, part of me is miles away to Africa and the Arab world. On the BBC TV, the mass abuse of human freedoms in Yemen and Syria by the people that are supposed to protect them are conspicuous and disturbing. If only the world and the United Nation System viewed nations and leaderships in the same way, perhaps some variants of no-fly-zones would have been imposed in those countries in a bid to curb the governments’ abuses of human freedoms. Compared to the case of Libya where a no-fly-zone was suggested and subsequently implemented based on the predicted danger that the Libyan government was going to pose in Eastern Libya, the Syrian and Yemen cases are gravely serious especially when we consider that many a person is being killed every day in protest rallies. One would only hope that God and perhaps the international community will do something posit...

By Dr Greenwell Matchaya, Berkshire, United Kingdom The need for industrialization in Africa and the developing world is real, although a debate about the means through which it may be achieved, has never been settled and may not be settled anytime soon. Fortunately, it appears that whatever the sources of industrialization may be, in practice they depend on the context such that each nation’s nature and degree of resource endowments are likely to help in dictating the feasible paths for industrialization for individual economies. This is perhaps one case where the concept of ‘one size fits all’ does not appear useful. Although the actual debate on the possible options for routes to industrialization for different African nations is being considered in a future article, effort is made herein to say something that could be useful for the Malawi economy. As we may already know, the lifeblood of Malawi’s economic growth and development is mainly the Agricultural sector so that policy chan...

by Greenwell Matchaya Dear beloved students This might sound unusual especially coming within this festive season however real learning doesn’t and mustn’t stop until you stop breathing (Lol). You can, and should be proud that you have made it to a UNIMA college that is very good and progressive, with a reputation of producing some of the finest minds of our society. The fact that you have made it to Bunda is an indication that you can also ‘found’ in yourselves great leaders, entrepreneurs and researchers of the future. As you are already aware there at Bunda you have programs that each of you belongs to such that some of you are pursuing BScs in Irrigation Engineering, Crops Sciences, Agribusiness, Agric Econs, Aqua-sciences, Social forestry, Animal science etc. These are fantastic programs that are tailor-designed to impart in you some of the rare core transferrable skills that you need for the future soon to come. As a member of the Bunda alumni community I would like to advise y...