By Draxon Maloya
Mobile Network Operators, Commercial Banks and Microfinance institutions in the country have re-introduced user fees and charges on person to person transfers on the same network, following the expiry of a three-month moratorium on interest and principal repayments issued by the Reserve Bank of Malawi.
The development comes despite continued recorded highest figures of confirmed Covid-19 cases.
In April, the finance regulator issued the moratorium with an aim of cushioning Malawians from the economic downturn caused by the Coronavirus and discouraging the use of hard cash as a Covid-19 preventive measure.
Consumer rights body (CAMA) through its Executive Director John Kapito suggests the Reserve Bank of Malawi to again quickly look into the matter.
“How can our financial institutions reintroduce service charges that were suspended because of Coronavirus and yet some organisations are still on lockdown,? This needs to be urgently looked into otherwise no one will survive, ” Kapito said
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) is planning to engage mobile phone operators to rescind their decision of reintroducing transaction fees on mobile money.
In April this year, RBM ordered the removal of fees charged when sending money using mobile wallet on Airtel money and TNM Mpamba platforms due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.