LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-The Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI) has released a hard-hitting statement warning that Salima Sugar Company Limited (SSCL) has become a “ticking bomb” due to massive mismanagement, corruption and political interference.

Addressing the news conference on Monday, CDEDI Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa,accuses senior executives and politically connected individuals of siphoning billions of kwacha from the company through fraudulent contracts, irregular payments and reckless decision-making.

CDEDI says the situation threatens the survival of the company and risks severe losses for the Malawian economy.

SSCL was originally formed as a joint venture between the Malawi Government through Greenbelt Holdings Limited and India’s AUM Sugar and Allied Limited. Its mandate was to introduce competition in the sugar market and provide affordable sugar to ordinary Malawians.

Instead, CDEDI says the company has been turned into a breeding ground for corruption.

The organisation links the current crisis to a 2023 directive by then Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Colleen Zamba, who instructed that all company matters be routed through Executive Chairman Wester Kossam. This position allowed Kossam to assume control over crucial operations of SSCL.

Although he appointed an acting CEO, Roy Apoovra, the CEO reportedly left Malawi for India shortly after his appointment, leaving Kossam to combine the duties of Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer without oversight.

According to CDEDI, the consequences have been catastrophic. During the 2024–2025 crushing season, SSCL produced only 8,400 metric tonnes of sugar against a target of 20,000 tonnes, compared to 18,000 tonnes produced the previous season.

The organisation warns that this sharp decline puts the company on the brink of losing around K30 billion in revenue. With rains already falling, hundreds of sugarcane farmers now fear their uncrushed cane will go to waste.

The poor output has been attributed to chronic machine breakdowns and failure to maintain the company’s sugar mill, which has the capacity to crush up to 300,000 metric tonnes of cane annually.

CDEDI also reports that the drip irrigation system collapsed during the growing season, causing large portions of the crop to dry up before harvest.

Beyond operational failures, the organisation has raised serious allegations of personal enrichment. It claims Kossam authorised a K15 million payment for his private super-link trailer and awarded a lucrative K1.3 billion sugar import contract to ESTT Holdings, a firm linked to a politically influential individual, Ronald Mdoka.

A delegation sent to Brazil to inspect the purchased sugar reportedly found stock that was already destined for another country and the sugar has never arrived in Malawi. The payment remains unrecovered.

Further allegations include the use of a foreign currency account belonging to an honorary consul in the Middle East to facilitate the Brazil transaction and the issuing of unpaid credit facilities worth about K1 billion to politically connected individuals.

CDEDI also reveal scandalous fertiliser deals in which suppliers received hundreds of millions of kwacha upfront but delivered nothing.

On governance, CDEDI argues that Kossam’s recent suspension is meaningless because his term effectively expired when the Greenbelt Authority board was dissolved in August 2024 and again reconstituted in 2025 without his name.The organisation says government cannot suspend someone whose mandate ended long ago.

CDEDI has urged the government to ensure that all funds allegedly acquired unlawfully are refunded. It wants law enforcement agencies to summon all individuals involved, including those linked to the failed sugar import deal.

The organisation is also calling for an urgent audit of the entire company and for the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture to explore ways to rescue SSCL from a crippling loan that is costing the company over K1.1 billion every month.

CDEDI Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa warns that unless decisive action is taken, Salima Sugar Company is headed for total collapse, leaving cane growers stranded and Malawians counting heavy losses.

The Maravi Post