The National Executive Committee for Examiners Association of Malawi had an audience with the state president of Malawi His Excellency Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera on 21st November 2022. At that time the National Executive Committee was accompanied by the Honorable Minister for Labour, Manpower Development and Youth, Madam Vera Kamtukule. Before the meeting, the Labour Minister, on behalf of the Whole Ministry thanked the state President for allowing her with the National Executive Committee for Ex-miners to come to the State House for the first time ever before to launch their concerns before the state President. The Honorable Minister asked the Ex-miners President Mr. John Dick to address the house. In his speech, Mr. John Dick thanked the Honorable Minister for the great job to ask the State President to have an audience with the Ex-miners’ representatives. He said that that had never happened before Ex-miners to meet the State President to have Round Table Discussion. After all, he said that it was not easy or simple for the Association to meet His Excellency as it took them many years to happen. He also said that he was very grateful with the President and wished him good health to continue leading this country. With those few remarks the Ex-miners President outlined the three issues which strike lives of the Ex-miners after they were banned to work in the mines of South Africa which meant the end of their contracts.

The Ex-miners Leader had presented the issues as follows:

A. He talked on the long awaited Unclaimed Social and Security Benefits which Ex-miners left after the ban. So, it was very difficult and hard to access their benefits to those who had been qualified to access mainly for deceased ones. On this issue the State President told the house that he will hold talks with his counterpart President His Excellency Mr. Ramaphosa to talk over that issue with the Alexander Forbes to lessen some of their requirements in order to let the examiner’s access their benefits easily. He continued by saying that all the benefits are not with the banks of South Africa as what happened after the closing of TEBA all the mines which were keeping the benefits had deposited them to the Alexander Forbes an insurance institution. The President had assured that he will do everything possible to let Ex-miners access their benefits.

B. On the second issue the Ex-miner’s leader presented that all the Ex-miners after the closure of their contracts they are facing with many difficulties socially and economically. He then asked the State President to consider the Ex-miners as same are very aged, by providing them with social cash transfer which is already on the ground for the elderly people so that they can be supported with. Mr. John Dick also explained to the State President that many Ex-miners are passing away day and night not only by natural death but also, by poverty and hunger which are striking them throughout their living. On that second issue the State leader told the house that since that the program of social cash transfer is being done in Malawi and initiated by the government will advise the Minster of Labour and the Minster of Gender to act on that issue so that all the Ex-miners will be able to access social cash transfer.

C. The last issue was to ask the State President to also consider Ex-miners to start benefiting to soft loans in order to do their small businesses to those people who are able to make them to support their families. In his replay, the President said that his government will see to it that those people who are able to access the loans are assisted to support their families while they are waiting for their benefits from Alexander Forbes. After this session the President thanked the house for its fruitful round table discussions and promised to Ex-miners that he will consider all what were brought forward to him and that he will act to them accordingly and timely.