(24 August, 2016 Golden Peacock Hotel)

·       Our Guest of Honour, Honourable Atupule Muluzi, Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development,

·       Mr. Moza Zezela, the Chief Executive, Lilongwe City Council,

·       Ms. Veronica Chidoche, Director of Administration of the Ministy of Lands, Housing and Urban Development,

·       Friends from the media

·       Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening! 晚上好!

I am delighted and honoured to stand before you this evening to welcome back the delegation for the Bilateral Seminar on City Planning and Development for Malawi which has successfully completed their bilateral training in China.

  "Welcome you back home!"

The training course on City Planning and Developmentwas tailor-made for Malawi delegation, starting from 3^rdto 22^nd August, at Hefei City in China. From the video which was just played tonight, we can find out what a fruitful and joyful training they have experienced in China. I was also informed by the organizer, Anhui Instittue of International Business that the delegation interacted very well with others and contributed to the discussions during the whole process. Therefore, I am confident that the professional skills and enriched experience will be beneficial to each participant and for the social-economic and infrastructure development of the Republic of Malawi.

The Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development in conjunction with other stakeholders, like the City Council and others have been playing a fundamental role in urban and infrastructure development for Malawi. The layout of infrastructure and services can make a difference in delivering quality of life at the right price point. It is of utmost importance to have our cities well planned in Malawi because housing, employment, accessibility and safety are key concerns for urban dwellers.  Urban planning also positively impacts the economy. Over the recent years, the efforts by different stakeholders in Malawi to advance city and urban planning have encouraged the Chinese Government and investors to come and invest in Malawi.

I once paid a visit to Malawi in 1995 and came back here in 2016, almost 21 years later.  I have been able to see tremendous changes and improvements in the infrastructure development in the cities and towns. The Chinese government takes pride in being part of the success story of Malawi's infrastructure and urban development. There have been different structures built by the Chinese government as a development partner, these include: the Bingu stadium, Bingu International Conference Centre, Presidential Villa, Parliament and different roads, just to mention a few.

Your Honourable Minister Atupule Muluzi, ladies and gentleman, since the establishment of diplomatic ties between our two countries in 2007, we have witnessed a fast growing and sound bilateral relation, as well as an increasing number of Chinese business people come to invest in Malawi. We hope that as the years advance and with more advanced ways in city planning and development, more Chinese investors will come to Malawi. And I strongly believe that with the assistance of China and other development partners, the cities and towns of Malawi will become even more beautiful.

Finally, I want to say that I wish the delegation will make full use of the knowledge they acquired in China in their respective work places. China is committed to the development of Malawi, and we will continue to sponsor more training courses for Malawian people.

Thank you!