Update: Following previous announcements of Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) reforms, the Ministry of Agriculture has confirmed the 2026-27 scheme will revert to using paper coupons, abandoning its digital database and mobile application systems. The inputs will be distributed through 5,446 farmer groups to over 1.2 million beneficiaries, who will pay K20,000 for a 50kg bag of fertiliser and K10,000 for a 5kg bag of seed, according to local media reports. Transparency campaigners have warned that the shift back to a paper-based system could reopen loopholes for corruption. Meanwhile, the Smallholder Farmers Fertiliser Revolving Fund of Malawi (SFFRFM) is lobbying the government to secure at least 75 percent of the K111 billion FISP procurement contracts, arguing that direct sourcing would save taxpayer money, Nation Online reports.
In maize procurement efforts, the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) is working to meet its target of 108,000 metric tonnes of maize at a buying price of K900 per kilogramme, according to Nation Online. Official updates indicate the agency has procured approximately 13,000 metric tonnes so far as it navigates a challenging grain market.
Update: Following previous demands for an audit of the Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (ADMARC), the state grain marketer has dismissed nine suspended officials after an internal investigation uncovered suspected fraud in maize flour production and milling service outsourcing, Nation Online reports. In the tobacco sector, the Tobacco Commission has announced that growers whose sales proceeds were withheld for exceeding their allocated quotas before August 14 will receive their payments by August 28, offering financial relief to farmers, according to Malawi24.