The Malawian government is pursuing an extraordinary $309 billion (£245 billion) in unpaid taxes and royalties from Columbia Gem House, a US-based gemstone company.
The claim stems from rubies exported from Malawi over the past decade. Columbia Gem House, a family-owned enterprise advocating fair trade practices, dismissed the allegations as “baseless and defamatory.”
Attorney General Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda also announced demands of $4 billion from French energy giant TotalEnergies over an oil storage deal and $9.5 million from Turkish tobacco firm Star Agritech.
While TotalEnergies declined to comment, Star Agritech denied owing any money.
The sums sought from the three multinational corporations dwarf Malawi’s economic capacity, amounting to nearly 300 times its $1.2 billion national debt and 22 times its $14 billion GDP.
Struggling with financial woes, Malawi secured a $174 million bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last year. Mining currently contributes just 1% to Malawi’s GDP, but the government has expressed ambitions to expand the sector in coming years.
Economist Wisdom Mgomezulu suggested the claims may be driven by the government’s dire financial situation. “They’re exploring all potential revenue sources, but the scale of these claims compared to the economy is staggering,” he told newsmen.
The dispute with TotalEnergies traces back to a 2001 agreement under which the company was to supply fuel to Malawi in exchange for tax incentives, Nyirenda said.
