MINIMUM WAGE INCREASED TO K35,000 PER MONTH – Malawi News Online

Presenting the full 2019/20 National Budget, the Minister of Finance, Joseph Mwanamvekha, outlined how K1.7 trillion was going to be spent in the next financial year. Among others, the living wage was increased to K35,000 per month, translated from K962 per day to K1, 346 per day.

The budget is an increase of 20.1% from the 2018/19 preliminary outcome of K1.4 trillion. Out of the total planned expenditure, K1.3 trillion, which is 20.6 percent of GDP, accounts for recurrent expenditure while K437.9 billion (representing 7.0% of GDP) is provided for the development budget.

At 7 percent of GDP, development expenditure in the 2019/20 Budget is the highest in recent years, as in the 2018/19 Budget, development spending was revised to 5.7% of GDP while in the previous financial year of 2017/18, it was recorded at 4.6% of the country’s total wealth as measured but GDP.

Economic experts and other development partners have described the 2019/20 National Budget as a ‘cautious’ financial plan. Prior to the official presentation, Mwanamvekha hinted that the 2019/20 National Budget will be a balanced fiscal plan that will sustain economic stability while bolstering growth rate.