Despite the 72-kilometre Marka-Bangula railway project missing its April 26 2024 deadline, Minister of Transport Jacob Hara has expressed optimism that by the end of 2024, the railway line will have reached Nsanje from Villa Nova dar Fronteira. Hara made the sentiments in an interview on the sidelines of an inspection tour of various public projects under his ministry in the Lower Shire on Friday. The railway line project which is currently at less than 20 percent, has faced numerous challenges leading to the initial deadline of November 2023 being changed to April 2024. But Hara said the gove ..read more

Cecelia Banda, a displaced woman based at a camp for the internally displaced in Nkhotakota District, should be basking in the joy of giving birth to her first child. But she is not. Her life and that of the baby, she laments, is clouded in pain. “The pain comes from my displacement and my husband’s disappearance,” the 18-year-old opened up in an interview on Thursday. “And there’s also uncertainty around my baby’s future due to my destitution,” Banda added. Banda fled her flood-ravaged home on Chauma Island, heavy with an eight-month-old pregnancy to become one of  hundreds at Ngala Camp ..read more

The State is expected to discontinue a corruption case against Vice-President Saulos Chilima, according to sources familiar with the matter. While both Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Masautso Chamkakala and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) director general Martha Chizuma refused to comment yesterday, our sources said the DPP was scheduled to submit a certificate of discontinuance to the High Court Financial Crimes division last Friday. “This was filed last Friday in the evening. I guess even the Judge (Redson Kapindu) is yet to see it. But what is important to note is that the case has been ..read more

Challenges the Directorate of Road Traffic and Safety Services (DRTSS) is facing to issue new driver’s licences has pushed the government to look for a new supplier, Nation on Sunday has established. Minister of Transport and Public Works Jacob Hara confirmed the search in an interview on Friday, that the new supplier will supplement the current contractor, Data Net Limited, up until when its contract expires. DRTSS and Data Net Limited signed a K1 billion contract in 2023 to supply polyvinyl chloride (PVC) cards to print the driver’s licence cards. A temporary licence DRTSS is currently issui ..read more

Netball Association of Malawi (NAM) says they expect the Malawi Queens coach Joana Kachilika to name a mostly youthful squad. The association’s general secretary Isaac Chimwala in an interview said it is time to have an energetic Queens squad. Chimwala said this as they wait for Kachilika to assemble a squad to start preparations for test series matches against South Africa in August before going to prestigious competitions such as the 2026 Commonwealth Games and the 2027 Netball World Cup. Chimwala: This will help in having energetic squad The coach is expected to come up with a relatively ne ..read more

After so much hullaballoo preceding the Blantyre derby, rivals FCB Nyasa Bullets and Mighty Mukuru Wanderers yesterday settled for yet another draw at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre. The two sides went on the pitch tied at eight points and left tied at nine points with goals from midfielders Isaac Kaliati for Wanderers and Patrick Mwaungulu for Bullets. However, the derby lived up to its billing as the country’s most sought for fixture with Wanderers dominating the first-half while the defending champions took over in the second stanza. The Nomads coach Nsanzurwimo Ramahdan had no time for experim ..read more

 My beautiful friend Lindani Assani this week started a debate on her Facebook page on cheating and infidelity. She wrote: “We always talk about women who sleep with married men, calling them all kinds of unpalatable names. We blame them for the relationship. Well, now we have a new phenomenon where single men are also busy dating married women. They know very well she is married, but they still go ahead and have a sexual relationship with her. Some even have the audacity to go and visit her in her matrimonial home. What do you call these men? Prostitutes? Do you call them gold diggers tr ..read more

Skilled Women Artisans in Malawi (Swam) founder Mary Chokani Mphonda established the organisation in February 2022. Its primary purpose is to nurture, enable and empower young women artisans in the construction industry and other trades. Swam originated from Mphonda’s observation during her involvement in a construction project, where she identified gaps in the artisans’ working methods. “They lacked some basic project management skills to plan their work well. They lacked soft skills to help them as professionals. I am passionate about continuous learning, entrepreneurship and women empowerme ..read more

 Society or community living demands consideration for others. This may come in form of sharing in cases where some have plenty than others. A good upbringing or kind heart always demands that we share. It would be heartless to discard food that is left over or plentiful when there are people a few blocks away starving. It is the natural rule. Now, the same natural rule applies to every other scenario. Because our communities consist of people from different backgrounds and upbringing, we all ought to be mindful of how certain decisions are made. Certain things we assume to be acceptable ..read more

Dear BMW, I need your help BMW. My mother has been single for some years now and has now started dating a new man. You see, my mother had me at a very young age, so we don’t differ as much in age. This also makes us very close, because I feel like she is as much my sister as she is my mother. So, a few days ago she asked me to meet this new man in her life, to assess him and tell her what I think about him. To my dismay, when I met this man I instantly knew him, as a remembered having a brief intimate relationship with him a few years ago. He is my mother’s age, so he isn’t too old for me, I a ..read more