President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika on Tuesday officially opened the Malawi-China Investment Forum where he said Malawi’s transition from aid to trade demands massive industrialization drive which should be underlined by building capacity among local investors and courting foreign investors into the economy.

“We have a broader investment agenda because we are broadening and diversifying the sources of our economy. We are moving Malawi from a consuming and importing economy to a producing and exporting economy. Therefore, you have come at the right time in our history, “he said.

The President also reiterated the importance of the private sector in achieving the investment goal.

“Our policy on the private sector is clear. We believe that the private sector is the driver of economic development in this country. We believe that foreign and domestic investment is the engine of economic development. We are focusing on developing the private sector in order to create more jobs for our people, “ he said.

He assured both local and foreign investors of his government’s commitment to create a conducive business environment through economic, administrative, legislative and regulatory reforms.

The event which has been convened under the theme “Fostering Production Capacity Cooperation between Malawi and Anhui Province of China” has brought about 100 investors from Anhui Province of China and 250 local businesses at the two-day event.

Areas of focus during the event will be Industry, Agriculture, Agro-Processing and Education.

The investment forum was first discussed when APM visited Anhui Province in August 2015 where he courted investors from the region to bring their businesses to Malawi.