Malawis nye præsident sluger Valutafondens strenge økonomiske kur for at komme på god fod med de store donorer af udviklingbistand, som lagde det fattige sydafrikanske land på is under den forrige, nu afdøde præsident.
Shoppers in Malawi have been scrambling (hamstre) to buy basic goods, fearing huge price rises after the currency (møntfod/valuta) was devalued by 33 per cet, BBC online reports Monday.
In Blantyre many shops had run out of staple foods such as sugar, cooking oil and bread by the end of Monday.
The kwacha was devalued as part of moves by the new government to restore donor funding. The former government had rejected IMF calls to devalue the currency to boost exports and reduce demand for imports..
The scramble comes despite economists saying they did not expect the devaluation to immediately lead to higher prices, as many businesses were expecting the move and were already using the new exchange rate.
The central bank announced that one dollar would now be worth 250 kwacha, up from 168, while the peg (kobling) to the US currency would be scrapped.
In recent years, Malawi has run short of foreign currency after donors cut aid and demand fell for its main export, tobacco. This led to a lack of fuel in the country.
In the four weeks she has been in power, President Banda has reversed several government policies.
Last week, she said she did not want Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir, accused of war crimes, to attend an African Union meeting in the country in July.
