Governments of Malawi and India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation in the field of trade of Pigeons peas that will see Malawi export to India 250, 000 metric tonnes of the legume in a five year period.
The MoU was signed Wednesday in Lilongwe by Minister of Trade, Sosten Gwengwe, and India High Commissioner to Malawi, Shri Gopalakrishnan.
Annually, Malawi is expected to export 50, 000 metric tonnes of the legume to India. However, it also provides for annual review of the tonnage based on Malawi’s’ performance.
Gwengwe said the agreement effective 2021 to 2026 will translate into a guaranteed market for local farmers in the business which has eluded them for a long time, and therefore pave way for an increase in the production quantities of pigeon peas in the country.
“The country also stands to benefit from competitive international market prices that the Indian market would be offering and thereby diversifying sources of foreign exchange for our economy.
In his remarks, Gopalakrishnan said the deal strengthens longstanding bilateral trade relations between the two countries.
