Update: Malawi's 2026 tobacco marketing season has fetched $282.5 million from 142.4 million kilogrammes sold during the first 19 weeks of trading, marking a sharp decline from the $500.4 million earned over the same period in 2025, according to Nyasa Times. The Tobacco Commission reported that the national average price also fell from $2.54 to $1.98 per kilogramme, with contract farming continuing to dominate sales at over 93 percent of total volumes.
Meanwhile, the Malawian government is seeking a $2.4 billion investment from the private sector and development partners to support 470,000 irrigable hectares under its mega-farms initiative, Nation Publications Limited reports. Presenting the plan at the 2026 Africa Food Systems Forum in Kigali, Rwanda, Minister of Agriculture Roza Fatch Mbilizi noted the need for investment-driven agricultural commercialisation to improve food security and tap into the export potential of crops such as groundnuts, soybeans, and rice. The project is projected to generate nearly 390,000 direct jobs.
In weather-related agricultural developments, the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services forecasts that 12 districts in the Southern Region face severe drought and extreme rainfall during the 2026/27 farming season, according to Nation Publications Limited. To prepare for the weather shocks, Minister Mbilizi stated that the government is promoting drought-resilient crops like cassava and sweet potato. Concurrently, a climate-resilient agriculture initiative by Oxfam in Malawi is assisting smallholder farmers in Dowa District by providing solar pumps and local seeds, successfully connecting them to new buyers at the 2026 National Agriculture Fair, Nation Online reports.