Malawi has launched a European Union (EU) – Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (MERA) Twinning Project to strengthen the institutional and technical capacity of the latter in the next two years.
This is a programme where the EU has established a strategic partnership between Malawian energy regulators on one hand and, on the other, Italian and Slovak energy regulators who are providing technical expertise to MERA.
Speaking at the launch in Lilongwe on Monday, Minister of Energy Ibrahim Matola said the programme reinforces government’s efforts in ensuring MERA remains focused and committed to balancing the interests of various stakeholders who include consumers.
He said the programme will strengthen MERA’s operations that ensure fair prices for reliable utility services and protection of consumers from market power abuses.
“This Twinning Programme could not have come at a better time than now when MERA is realigning itself to the Malawi 2063 aspirations for modernization and industrialization of the economy with the energy sector playing a central role,” added Matola.
EU Ambassador to Malawi, Rune Skinnebach, said the EU supports Malawi’s long-term development plan, Malawi 2063, and achieving its goal of reaching an industrialized, upper middle-income status by 2063 depends much on the development of a modern energy sector.
He further said apart from enhancing access to energy in Malawi, the project will also strengthen MERA’s capacity on the areas of economic regulation, market analysis, legal capacity, administration and consumer protection.
The partnership also supports institution building by, among others, providing peer-to-peer public sector expertise and facilitating policy dialogue between Malawi and the EU.
“This is the EU’s first Twinning Project in the energy sector in Africa, which brings together the Italian and Slovak energy regulators under a Team Europe Initiative,” said Skinnebach.
The €2.5 million (approximately K3 billion) EU funded project started on May 22, 2023 and is expected to run for a period of 27 months.
Reported By Robert Katuli
