Category: News

Lotus Resources Limited, an Australian mining company, has announced plans to resume operations at the Kayerekera uranium mine in Karonga district in June. The mine has been closed since 2014 due to consistently low uranium prices.

This was disclosed on Wednesday during a meeting which Lotus Resources Limited officials held with the Minister of Mining Kenneth Zikhale Ng’oma at the ministry’s offices in Lilongwe.

Lotus Resources Limited Managing Director Greg Bittar, said the company is on the right track to resume mining operations and processes within the third quarter of the year.

Bittar further said the company has already employed over 300 local workers at the site.

“Operations will resume in June 2025 with production of the first product expected one or two months after the resumption of production,” he said.

Bittar added that the company signed the Community Development Agreement (CDA) in January, 2025 for the company to provide a broad support to the local communities.

Bittar highlighted that the company is working on environmental assessment issues as currently a draft on the same has been submitted to Malawi Environmental Protection Authority (MEPA).

In his remarks, Mining minister Kenneth Zikhale Ng’oma underscored the importance of community participation in the Mining activities, which is essential for the country to achieve its flagship ATM (Affordable Technology and Mining) strategy.

He expressed the government’s commitment to collaborating with the company to facilitate mining activities.

Meanwhile,the Minister expressed optimism that the economy will improve, considering that the closure of the Kayerekera uranium mine had a detrimental impact on the country’s financial health.

Lotus Resources Limited owns 85% of the Kayerekera Uranium project in Malawi.

The Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) has launched the Global Money Week which seeks to raise financial literacy among young and to help them gradually acquire the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors needed to make wise financial decisions and eventually attain financial resilience and well-being.

Speaking during the launch on Monday at Bangwe Secondary School in Blantyre, RBM’s Chief Examiner – Consumer Protection and Financial Literacy Madalitso Chamba urged the young people in the country to embrace the culture of saving money saying it is critical for their future.

“We may say children have no money, but these children, they manage money. They have pocket money, and how they are spending that pocket money matters,” she stated.

She added that, “What is important for them are the resources. If somebody has 10,000, out of that 10,000 is a child able to serve. And whatever amount the child is serving, what are they doing with the savings? So those are the resources that we are teaching, that we are incorporating, so that when these students graduate from school, they are able to use those resources in their lives.”

A form-four student at Bangwe Secondary School, McCollin Petro discusses what he believes to be a crucial component of saving money.

“These messages are very good, in my opinion. I have been motivated because I believe that I have used money excessively in the past. However, I am determined to use money properly moving forward, especially since we will be going to the world after the exam” he explained.

According to the central bank, a number of activities have been lined up targeting students across the country to sensitize them on financial literacy.

This is the 13th edition of Global Money Week which is taking place from March 17-23, 2025. It began in 2012 and has now expanded to 176 countries, reaching over 60 million children and youth.

The week is being commemorated under the theme, “Think before you follow, wise money tomorrow”.

The Malawi Network of Older Persons’ Organisations (MANEPO) says older persons need to be reached with health services in the closest places possible if the country wants to achieve a better quality of life for them.

This has been singled out as the organization implements the BMZ Project, which aims to provide age-appropriate and integrated health services to older men and women in Zomba, Balaka, and Machinga districts, especially those afflicted with HIV/AIDS and non-communicable diseases (NCDs).

BMZ project manager Maria Masiye says they have already trained healthcare workers, health surveillance assistants, and community volunteers to enhance health monitoring, including blood pressure checks in older people.

She says that through the promotion of inclusive healthcare policies, the establishment of community-based support networks, and attention to their unique health requirements, the project is improving the quality and accessibility of healthcare for older persons as one way of helping them live happily.

Masiye further states that this is one way of addressing challenges such as travel distance for those in need, citing long distances to health facilities in most areas.

The project which started in 2023 receives funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the Help Age German.

The Catholic Development Commission (CADECOM) in the archdiocese of Lilongwe, in partnership with Permaculture Paradise Institute is implementing the “Improved Livelihood and Resilience of Smallholder Producers” project, with financial support from Norwegian Church Aid (NCA), and DanChurch Aid (DCA), aiming at bolstering food security and economic resilience through agroecology.

According to the secretary of CADECOM in the archdiocese, Madalitso Chilalire, the project focuses on empowering farmers with the skills and knowledge to produce diverse and nutritious food crops year-round, utilizing their surrounding compounds.

“We are encouraging them to grow different types of crops that mature at different stages in life so that their families are food sufficient and also are economically empowered,” Chilalire said.

He also added that the initiative has garnered positive feedback from the community, with many households actively practicing the newly acquired agroecological techniques.

This has been highlighted during a monitoring visit in Dowa, where the 750 participating farmers are actively engaged.

In her remarks, Miriam Njolomore, the nutritional advisor in Dowa district, praised the project for its alignment with the Malawi 2063 development agenda, emphasizing its contribution to addressing nutrition and food security challenges.

Njolomore added that the project will also help farmers to be gaining money and overcome the nutrition and food security challenges in their households throughout the year.

Adding on that, one of the farmers from Dowa west EPA of mponera, Lobizi kanjedza expressed his gratitude, stating that the initiative has helped him and others working with the project to improve their livelihoods in the way they never thought they will.

Cadecom envisions a cascading effect, where the 750 project beneficiaries will train an additional 700 non-participants in agroecological practices.

The project’s success in Dowa West EPA is anticipated to serve as a model for wider adoption of agroecology across the region, contributing to long-term food security and economic stability in Malawi.

By Tiyamike Paul Chisale

Achinyamata mu Arkidayosizi ya Lilongwe, apemphedwa kuti akuyenera kugwiritsa ntchito mwayi komanso kupanga ziganizo zoyenera pa momwe angatumikire Mulungu kudzera mmayitanidwe awo.

Ambuye George Desmond Tambala a Arkidayosizi ya Lilongwe, ndiomwe apeleka pempholi lero pa 09 March 2025 ku Parish ya St. Mathias (Lumbadzi) pa mwambo wa nsembe ya Misa yotsekulira zochitikachitika za tsiku la Mulungu la mayitanidwe Mpingo (Vocation Sunday).

Ambuye Tambala ati uwu ndimwayi oti achinyamata asinkhesinkhe ndikumva komanso kusankha mayitanidwe omwe Mulungu akuwayitanira, kuti atumikile mpingo waKatolika.

“Pempho langa kwa achinyamata ndiloti asinkhesinkhe za kuyitanidwa kwawo , komanso asankhe osakhala mawa, koma lero, chifukwa achinyamata ambiri amazinamiza kuti ndizasankha mawa pankhani yamayitanidwe awo,” anatero ambuye Tambala.

Mkulu owona za mabungwe a utumiki wa Papa (PMS) mu Arkidayosizi ya Lilongwe, bambo Geoffrey Chikapa, ati ofesi yawo ikhala ikupereka maphunzitso osiyanasiyana kwa achinyamata, ndi cholinga choti athe kumvetsa bwino pankhani ya mayitanidwe pa moyo wawo wachikhristu.

“Ngati ofesi yowona za mabungwe a utumiki wa Papa, tigwira ntchito molumikizana ndi bungwe lomwe limaona za achinyamata, komanso gulu lomwe limayang’anira zamayitanidwe mu Arkidayosizi yathu, tikhala tikuyendera achinyamata kuwalimbikitsa komanso kupereka mauthenga osiyanasiyana okhudzana ndi mayitanidwe.”

Ndipo m’mawu awo, Sister Agness Mwamba achipani cha Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Asis, omweso ndi mlembi ku gulu loyang’anira zamayitanidwe mu Arkidayosizi ya Lilongwe, ati athandizira kupereka maphunzitso osiyanasiyana kwa achinyamata m’maparishi, kuti athe kumvetsa bwino zamayitanidwe pa moyo wawo.

Mutu wa chaka chino wa la Mulungu la mayitanidwe mu Mpingo ndi “Achinyamata Ndi Atumiki Achiyembekezo,” ndipo chakachi chidzachitika pa 10 May 2025.

Wolemba ndi Titus Jata Phiri

The St. Vincent Pallotti House in Lilongwe has today 08th March 2025, witnessed a joyous occasion as Brothers Barnett Chokani Phiri and Yohane Lucas of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate were ordained as deacons.

The ceremony, led by Archbishop George Desmond Tambala of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lilongwe, highlighted the importance of service and the remarkable growth of the Pallottine Congregation.

Archbishop Tambala expressed his heartfelt gratitude and encouragement to the newly ordained deacons, emphasizing the essence of their ministry.

“A message of encouragement, a message of gratitude and a message of prayers for them,” Archbishop Tambala stated. “We are going to pray, we promised to pray for them and also encourage them in their new ministry to stick by what they have promised here.”

His Grace Tambala underscored the biblical roots of the diaconate, tracing it back to the apostles’ selection of individuals to serve the poor.

“Today deacons they do service in many ways and in the church that’s what we expect them to do,” he explained. “So, another example that I use to illustrate this is Jesus himself who said that if one of us has to be considered great amongst us he is the one who serves. But also, Jesus washed the feet of the disciples. So, this is why I kept insisting and we have to insist that being a deacon is actually about service.”

The archbishop also praised the Pallottine congregation for their significant contribution to the archdiocese through their chaplaincy.

“For the Palatines congregation the same thing, a message of gratitude because they are helping us a lot in that process through the chaplaincy. So many, many thanks,” he said.

The Archbishop also expressed his hope that these young seminarians would serve as role models and mentors for the youth. “And also, for the youth, I would like also that these young people, we can engage them at some stage, to interact with the youth, to encourage the youth in their own struggles, you know,” he said.

Deacon Barnett Chokani Phiri, one of the newly ordained, shared his profound joy and gratitude.

“I am very pleased and very grateful to God first of all for the gift of Diaconate that I have received today,” he said. “This is something that I’ve been longing for so many years ever since I decided to respond positively to the calling in the Catholic Church.”

Deacon Barnett also offered words of encouragement to young people, urging them to pursue their goals with prayer and dedication.

“Life is a project and so just like in any other project you aim at something and once you aim at something put it into prayer and then God will help you from what you already want to do with your life.”

 The Pallottine priests will serve not only in Malawi but also in countries like Rwanda, South Africa, West Africa, and Germany. The celebration was a testament to the dedication of the newly ordained deacons and the vibrant growth of the Pallottine congregation in Lilongwe.

By Eric Mkwaira

Archbishop George Desmond Tambala ordains Barnett Chokani Phiri and Yohane Lucas as deacons in Lilongwe

Utatu Woyera (Kawale) Joint choir singing as the Archbishop blesses the newly ordained deacons

Joyful celebrations at the Diaconate Ordination in Lilongwe

The community comes together to celebrate the new deacons

The facade of St. Vincent Pallotti House, where the Pallottine community celebrated the ordination