Despite tougher laws and arrests, vandalism of electricity infrastructure is on the rise. An investigation reveals a thriving unregulated scrap metal market quietly absorbing stolen materials—and keeping the crime alive – Tamanda Matebule reports.
In 2024, Parliament passed the Electricity Act, introducing stiffer penalties, including prison sentences of up to 30 years without any option of a fine, in a bid to curb rampant vandalism of electricity infrastructure.
But the crackdown has not worked.
Years later, vandalism is not only persisting, it is escalating. Escom – the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi estimates it is losing around MK30 billion to vandalism, as stolen cables, transformers and other critical components continue to disappear from the national grid.
Now, an investigation points to a critical but largely overlooked enabler: a thriving, unregulated scrap metal market that is quietly sustaining the crime.
Blackouts, losses and a growing toll
Across the country, the impact of vandalism is immediate and costly.
In Blantyre’s Chichiri area, restaurant operator Alexious Muwawa says a recent theft of electricity materials forced him to switch to charcoal.
“We now spend about MK16,000 per week just to keep running. With electricity, we would spend around MK24,000 for the whole month,” he says.
Just metres away, the Malawi Institute of Journalism was pushed into similar strain forcing its radio station to operate on diesel for nearly three weeks following theft of nearby copper wires belonging to Escom.
Executive Director Levi Phelani describes the experience as financially draining.
“We normally spend about MK195,000 on electricity per month. But during the blackout, we used MK1 200,000 in just three weeks,” he says.
For the large-scale industry, the stakes are even higher.
Illovo Sugar Malawi says it is losing billions of kwacha annually due to vandalism of electricity infrastructure, losses that are directly cutting into production and profitability.
Why tougher laws are failing
Tabled and passed in Parliament in 2024, the Electricity Act was meant to act as a deterrent. However, despite tougher penalties and increased arrests, the crime continues raising the question, why the trend?
This investigation can reveal the answer may lie beyond the vandals themselves – rather within the market that buys from them.
Stolen electricity materials – copper wires, aluminium conductors and transformers parts are consistently finding their way onto the scrap metal trade, where, once there, they become difficult to trace, but easy to process, and quick to convert into cash.
And within that trade, a pattern is emerging.
A tale of two markets
Malawi’s scrap metal sector is effectively split into two systems:
- a registered and regulated market, governed by licensing and oversight;
- and a parallel, largely unregulated network, operating outside formal controls.
Evidence gathered during this investigation suggests that most stolen electricity infrastructure ends up in the second system.
Patrick Jonathan, chairperson of the Scrap Metal Dealers Association of Malawi, says the gap is undermining efforts to curb vandalism.
“The starting point should be registering all scrap metal dealers. Right now, there’s a parallel market where buyers are not bound by any rules,” he says.
Licensed dealers, he explains, often reject suspicious materials and alert authorities when sellers fail to provide documentation.
“In fact, we act as whistleblowers. But those outside the system are the ones buying stolen equipment.”
Inside the unregulated trade
In Blantyre, an intermediary operating along Mapanga Road admits to buying scrap on behalf of foreign-owned businesses without any form of registration or documentation.
The transactions are simple: no paperwork, no verification, and immediate cash payments – conditions making the unregulated market an attractive destination for vandals seeking quick returns.
Policy holders and industry players say this informal network allows stolen infrastructure to be absorbed, mixed with legitimate scrap, and, in some cases, exported beyond Malawi’s borders, effectively erasing its origin.
The findings suggest that vandalism is no longer just a crime of opportunity. It is sustained by a ready market where stolen electricity infrastructure is quietly converted into cash, beyond the reach of regulation.
A cross-border dimension
Authorities say the problem does not stop at Malawi’s borders.
There have been cases where stolen Escom materials are intercepted en-route to neighbouring countries, including Zimbabwe and Mozambique, with some consignments reportedly destined for South Africa.
These incidents point to the existence of a broader, coordinated network exploiting regional trade routes.
Energy policy expert Edgar Kapeza Bhayani says while cross-border enforcement efforts are important, they cannot replace domestic regulation.
“It is critical to normalise and regulate the scrap metal market locally. Otherwise, the parallel system will continue to provide an easy outlet for stolen materials,” he says.
The accountability gap
On the other hand; Government officials acknowledge the dilemma.
Energy Minister Jean Mathanga says while the Electricity Act introduced stiffer penalties, more needs to be done to regulate the scrap metal sector.
“It’s important to reinforce laws governing the scrap metal market and strengthen ties with scrap metal associations, because that’s where most stolen materials end up,” she says.
Police, on the other hand, point to internal vulnerabilities within the system, citing cases where some ESCOM employees have been implicated in theft and vandalism.
But even as enforcement efforts intensify, the investigation exposes a critical gap: while authorities pursue vandals, far less attention is being paid to dismantling the market that makes the crime profitable – hence the calls for stricter regulation of the scrap metal market or indeed some restructuring of this sector.
Thus, as long as unregulated buyers continue to operate, the incentives for vandalism remain firmly in place – raising the fundamental question:
Who is policing the market that fuels Malawi’s electricity vandalism crisis?