Sugarcane growers praise PDU for initiating tariff deal

Some sugarcane growers under the Kasinthula Cooperative have commended the Presidential Delivery Unit (PDU) for initiating an agricultural electricity tariff deal, which they say has significantly reduced their power costs and boosted profits.

Chairperson of the Kasinthula Cooperative, Amade Alide, said the group previously paid around ninety million kwacha per month for electricity. Still, the amount has now dropped to about sixty million kwacha.

According to Alide, the PDU facilitated discussions among key stakeholders to address challenges in the energy sector, leading to the new tariff structure.

“Our profit margin has increased since we started paying the new, more reasonable tariffs. As a result, members are now receiving substantial dividends,” Alide said.

The PDU, with financial support from the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), is implementing a project to resolve energy-related barriers to agricultural productivity.

Deputy Secretary to the Office of the President and Cabinet, Janet Banda, who heads the PDU, said they intervened after observing that cooperative farmers were burdened with high electricity costs.

“We are very pleased with the progress made. When we launched this initiative, our goal was to promote affordable access to energy for irrigation farming under our Agri-Energy focus. We hope to expand our efforts, especially under Mission 300,” Banda said.

Meanwhile, GEAPP Country Lead, Collen Zalengera, has urged the government of Malawi to intensify efforts to increase electricity generation and improve access for all citizens.

Currently, only about 25 percent of Malawians are connected to the national electricity grid, well below the 2030 target of 70 percent.