Exports quota to region increased

The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) have increased Malawi’s textile and garment export quotas to their countries under the Southern African Development Community (SADC) free trade protocol which comes into effect on 1 October. Media reports said Malawi would be able to export under duty free preferential treatment 12 million garments, 800,000 kg of synthetic fibres, blankets and bed linen, 200,000 kg of man-made fibres, 90,000 kg of textile fabric and 1.4 million kg of cotton and yarn. Malawi had since the early 1990s enjoyed duty-free access to the South African market as part of a bilateral trade agreement under which it increased textile exports to South Africa from less than US $5 million in 1994 to US $70 million in 1998. Malawi’s textile and garment industry also employed 11,000 people in 1998 from less than 4,000 in 1994.