Without disclosing the names of the companies, the government of Malawi said it had licensed three leaf dealers from China, Egypt and South Africa to participate in the 2015 marketing season that started on March 4, according to a story by Thula Chisamba for Malawi24.
The move is aimed at increasing competition in a country where many growers believe that they are not being treated fairly.
An Anadolu Agency story in October said that tobacco growers felt they were between a rock and a hard place: falling prices on the one hand and government apathy on the other.
One grower quoted in the story said that buyers were not giving farmers a fair deal; they were taking away the tobacco at a price of their own choosing.
Another said that he was paid an average of £0.80 per kg for his tobacco, which was not enough to repay the loans he took out to buy the agricultural inputs he needed.
Meanwhile, Bruce Munthali, chief executive of the Tobacco Control Commission, was quoted by Chisamba as saying that licensing the three buyers would create “stiff competition” on the market and deliver fairer prices to farmers.
Tobacco growers welcomed the move.