Cattle herds and the hungry season crime wave in Lilongwe

On my way to work a couple weeks ago, I came across an interesting sight. Herds of cattle being led through the city. I’d never seen a single cow in Lilongwe, nevermind several herds! There are men from the city who earn money by heading to the far north of the country, where cattle are cheap, and then walk them to Lilongwe for sale. The journey takes 5 solid days of walking, stopping only in the evenings to rest. The cows are then fattened up for a month or so before being slaughtered.

I was told that this is a common practice at this time of year, when food reserves from last year have been exhausted, but before the next harvest. Prices are also at their peak for other key foods such as tomatoes, which along with maize also make an appearance at every meal. So, people have to use some different means to earn cash to buy food.

It should therefore come as little surprise that it is also a peak time for crime here in Lilongwe. I guess you could call it “subsistence theft” as desperate people start supplementing their income in less savory ways. Break-ins and car jackings become more regular occurrences at this time. Certain roads are best avoided, and I even heard that at one intersection police are advising motorists to run red lights at night, as multiple people have been carjacked while waiting for the light to turn green. Even I have had would-be thieves chased away by our watchman on a couple of occasions.

Thankfully, harvest time has begun. Tobacco sales have started at the auction floors, where the majority of farmers sell their tobacco, and prices are at record highs – over 400% higher than last year, which was already a very good year. Soon all the maize shall be harvested too.

Perhaps some day, as Malawi continues on its slow path to development, this phenomenon of hungry season crime waves will be a thing of the past . . .