Download: Full Report | Executive Summary
The Country Private Sector Diagnostic (CPSD) for Malawi provides a set of recommendations that will contribute towards unlocking private sector investment, and describes how this will contribute to job creation, and export diversification. Malawi has significant potential. This arises from its natural resources, a favorable climate, and emerging mining sector. Despite this private investment remains below its potential. This reflects persistent macroeconomic challenges, including foreign exchange shortages and weak export performance, alongside structural constraints such as a restrictive business environment, rising concerns around corruption, and barriers affecting firm competitiveness.
To unlock growth, the report identifies concrete, actionable recommendations that can promote private sector investment in export orientated sectors. It does so through deep dives in three sub-sectors, international nature-based tourism, mango production and processing, and rutile and graphite mining. Each of these offer strong potential for investment, job creation, and foreign exchange generation. Tourism leverages Malawi’s natural beauty to attract regional and global visitors, while the mango sector benefits from favorable growing conditions and a unique harvest window that allows access to export markets. The mining sector, particularly rutile and graphite linked to the global energy transition, has the potential to mobilize large-scale capital investment. Across these sectors, the report estimates that reforms could more than double exports and generate over 100,000 jobs over the medium term.
Realizing these opportunities requires addressing key constraints to investment. These include limited access to land for productive investors, weak public–private dialogue, poor connectivity, especially air transport and roads, and regulatory uncertainty. Sector-specific reforms are also needed, such as improving concession frameworks in tourism, and clarifying regulatory provisions in mining. By implementing reforms in these areas, Malawi can unlock private sector investment that supports job creation, economic diversification, and long-term growth.
