VZCZCXRO2656
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHLMC RUEHMA RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN
RUEHTRO
DE RUEHLG #0053/01 0431518
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 121517Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY LILONGWE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0076
INFO AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION WASHINGTON DC
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0004

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 LILONGWE 000053 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
DEPARTMENT PASS USAID 
LONDON FOR AF WATCHER PETER LORD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL EAID AU KPKO KDEM MI
SUBJECT: MALAWI: THE NEW AU CHAIRMAN OUTLINES HIS PLANS 
 
REF: 10 LILONGWE 37 
 
SUMMARY 
 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  New African Union Chairman Bingu wa Mutharika summoned 
the diplomatic corps and heads of international organizations in 
Lilongwe to brief them on his plans for the AU.  Noting that he had 
only eleven months left in his AU tenure, Mutharika stated that he 
plans to be "action oriented."  Business as usual at the AU - 
characterized by resolutions and studies with little to show for 
the effort - will be a thing of the past, he said.  Mutharika 
outlined four focus areas for his chairmanship:  peace and 
security; food security; roads and transport infrastructure; and 
energy and climate.  He acknowledged he would need cooperation from 
the international community to be successful.  Referring to the 
important roles played by international partners in Malawi, 
Mutharika said, "You have always been there for us, and we ask for 
your help again now."  He made a specific request for funding 
support to defray costs related to his chairmanship.  End summary. 
 
 
 
A RELAXED BINGU SPEAKS 
 
 
 
¶2.  (SBU) True to his word (reftel), Malawi President Bingu wa 
Mutharika invited the diplomatic corps and heads of international 
organizations in Malawi to State House to brief on his plans as AU 
Chairman.  Mindful that he had only eleven months to work on his 
agenda, an unusually relaxed and self-confident Bingu talked about 
his priorities and stressed the need for cooperation.  He was 
emphatic the he could not be successful without the assistance of 
the diplomatic community and Malawi's development partners. 
 
 
 
PROGRESS ON PEACE AND SECURITY 
 
 
 
¶3. (SBU)  Mutharika provided a tour d' horizon of the peace and 
security hotspots in Africa, specifically mentioning the DRC, 
Somalia, Madagascar, Zimbabwe and Sudan.  He stated that he plans 
to be involved in bringing about lasting solutions, noting that the 
entire continent's development was being held back by conflict in 
these problem areas. 
 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) Mutharika noted his intention to engage on Zimbabwe as AU 
Chairman, which is particularly noteworthy given his historic 
reluctance to press the Mugabe regime.  He also intends to travel 
to Sudan to get a better sense of the situation on the ground 
there.  He noted the upcoming referendum, stating it was critical 
that all the parties involved accept its results.  He added that if 
the referendum results in an independent southern Sudan, final 
implementation will require detailed discussions and agreements on 
the trans-shipment of goods to the new nation.   He will be 
particularly focused on this issue as any resolution would likely 
occur during his tenure. 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  Mutharika also discussed the upcoming general election 
in Sudan, indicating that, as best he could tell, there were at 
least 13 candidates and 72 political parties.  He would be looking 
to partners that have experience in building democratic 
institutions to help ensure a free and fair election, he said. 
 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU) On Madagascar, Mutharika lamented that the current SADC 
agreement was being all but ignored by the current president and 
stated that it was time to pressure him to "get back to business" 
and work towards general elections. 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  The President touched on Somalia briefly, highlighting 
 
LILONGWE 00000053  002 OF 003 
 
 
the issues of piracy and al-Qaeda's presence there.  He committed 
himself to deal with these challenges effectively.  Mutharika also 
mentioned the need for more robust peacekeeping planning and 
operations, noting that Malawi had a battalion that was trained, 
but was unable to deploy due to "problems with procuring 
equipment." (Note:  Reftel reports Murtharika's other recent 
comments regarding Malawi's peacekeeping equipment issues.  End 
note.) 
 
 
 
BINGU ENDORSES U.S. FOOD SECURITY INITIATIVE 
 
 
 
¶8. (SBU)  On food security, one of Mutharika's favored subjects, he 
made an impassioned argument that it should be a primary focus.  He 
reiterated his goal that within five years, no child should die of 
hunger in Africa.  He was adamant that this was achievable, and 
that Africa should be able not only to feed itself, but also to 
feed the world.  Mutharika praised President Obama's recent call to 
action embodied in the Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative 
and its focus on growing food, as opposed to providing food aid. 
He said the issue of food security should be dealt with on a 
regional basis - not nation by nation - and that strategies need to 
focus on staple foods that are familiar to Africans. 
 
 
 
ROADS AND TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE 
 
 
 
¶9. (SBU)  Mutharika expressed satisfaction with the recently 
concluded AU summit's focus on infrastructure development.  He was 
embarrassed that Africa was endowed with a plethora of "roads to 
nowhere."  He contrasted the current state of Africa's transport 
infrastructure with that of the United States, remarking on the 
ease of quickly driving from the Atlantic to the Pacific, or from 
Canada to Mexico.  Mutharika then commented that without good roads 
and transport infrastructure, true food security was impossible. 
 
 
 
ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE 
 
 
 
¶10. (SBU)  Mutharika called for expanded exploration of all energy 
technologies - wind, hydro, solar, geothermal - to obtain the 
energy needed for Africa's development. He highlighted the need for 
a continental electrical grid.  Such a grid would allow for easy 
trading of electrical energy between countries, but he added no 
country could tackle the project on its own.  Mutharika made a 
special plea for assistance in developing a databank on energy 
generation potential, existing infrastructure and food production 
capabilities to ensure better strategic and integrated regional 
planning in these areas.  He noted that all of this required 
information technology expertise that was scarce in Africa, but 
that the donor community could provide it. 
 
 
 
IMPASSIONED PLEA FOR COOPERATION 
 
 
 
¶11. (SBU)  Mutharika made an impassioned plea for cooperation and 
help saying, "Please assist us.  Please assist me."  With 
uncharacteristic humility, he added, "In the past, Malawi passed 
through difficult years.  It would not have been possible to do so 
without your help."  He said he and his government were open to 
suggestions on how to move forward and he hoped that the diplomatic 
and development communities would continue to engage with him. 
 
 
 
SPECIFIC ASSISTANCE REQUESTS 
 
 
 
¶12. (SBU)  Moving to specifics, Mutharika asked for funding to 
 
LILONGWE 00000053  003 OF 003 
 
 
support his travel budget.  He explained how he would be travelling 
frequently in his new role and gave a detailed justification for 
the GOM's recent purchase of a new jet, saying that travel for AU 
business would be impossible without it.  He emphasized that a 
detailed cost-benefit analysis had been done which found that it 
would be cheaper to purchase a jet than to charter one.  He  also 
predicted that his government would be required to host countless 
visitors and conferences, and that this amounted to an unfunded 
mandate that came with the Chairmanship.  He sought assistance in 
this regard also. 
 
 
 
COMMENT 
 
 
 
¶13.  (SBU) President Mutharika appeared surprisingly relaxed and 
comfortable dealing with the detailed subject matter discussed at 
the AU summit, and asking for help.  He noted that he would be 
forming a task force to deal with AU issues as they arose and 
welcomed foreign participation in the group. 
 
 
 
¶14.  (SBU)  While he acknowledged the limited time and resources 
available to get things done during his one-year tenure, it was 
clear that Mutharika hopes to leave his mark on the continent. 
Having won a second term as Malawi's President and now being 
selected for AU Chairman, he is focused on constructing a tangible 
and lasting legacy.  Where this desire to be effective aligns with 
USG policy, we may be able to use this to our advantage.  We look 
forward to working with the Department and the AU mission to take 
utilize fully the opportunities presented by Mutharika's 
chairmanship. 
BODDE