Scotland Malawi Trade Partnership
On the 26th of January 2007 Imani Enterprise was awarded an amount of £202,000 through the Scottish Government’s International Development Fund (IDF) to assist the Partnership for Trade Policy Development. The project commenced at the end of March 2007.
The goal of the project is to:
Influence and assist in developing trade, as well as trade policy that will improve the enabling environment, between Scotland and Malawi
The aims of the project are:
- To inform and beneficially influence trade policy development in Malawi
- To disseminate trade policy information in Malawi
- To increase awareness of trade and trade policy issues with Malawi in Scotland
- To increase real value of exports from Malawi organizations in key industries, as identified by the Malawi National Export Strategy, to Scotland
- To access investment capital for Malawi businesses
- To assist with access to Malawi markets for appropriate Scottish products (from tourism to wind energy)
Three specific objectives were identified in the funding application, namely:
- To work with the TPNWG in order to assess and identify key areas for export expansion for major industries identified by the Malawian National Export Strategy
- To ensure targeted Malawian businesses and organization are export ready in order to engage and trade with Scottish markets prior to the proposed trade fair
- Provide a trading and investment opportunity through running a Malawi trade fair in Scotland
The first phase of this project culminated in a Trade Connections event at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in November 2007, bringing together key Scottish buyers and producers from Malawi to discuss business opportunities and place firm orders for Malawian and Fairtrade products.
Imani Enterprise was allocated an additional 400,000 pounds IDF grant over the next three years to assist with continued sustainable business growth in Malawi.
Murdoch Gatward, Managing Director of Imani Enterprise, said:
“The SMTP has been established to facilitate fair trade between Scotland and Malawi. The funding received from the Scottish Government for three years will see eight products established in Scotland. The first product, 17 tonnes of rice, arrived for Fairtrade Fortnight 2009.”