Malawi's Mutharika appoints tainted minister

Malawi’s President, Peter Mutharika, reappointed Joseph Mwanamvekha as finance minister, even as he faces fraud and money laundering charges linked to one of the country’s largest corruption scandals.

- Collins Mtika

Second round: Malawian President Peter Mutharika's re-appointment of Joseph Mwanamvekha, left, as finance minister could imperil the country's economic recovery efforts, donors and governance activists say. Photo: Democratic Progress Party/Facebook/ Malawi News Agency

(Democratic Progress Party/Facebook/ Malawi News Agency)

Mwanamvekha, 57, was indicted in a $274.5 million case tied to Salima Sugar Company, and returns at a moment of deep economic crisis marked by soaring inflation, shrinking foreign currency reserves and fragile international donor trust.

The announcement on Monday has drawn sharp warnings from donors and governance advocates who say it could jeopardise Malawi's negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and derail the country’s economic recovery efforts.

Mwanamvekha, who previously held the finance portfolio from 2016 to 2020, was arrested in January alongside four senior officials and charged with seven counts of fraud and one count of money laundering.