The newly introduced carbon tax is set at K4 000, K8 000, K11 500 and K15 555 for motor vehicles with engine size of between 0 to 1500, 1501 to 2000, 2001 to 3000 and above 3000, respectively. However the Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) chief executive officer Chancellor Kaferapanjira commented that rather than be fixed according to capacity of a vehicle,  carbon tax must be proportionate to the respective vehicles’ usage.

Kaferapanjira outlined that a vehicle with a small capacity can use more fuel than a truck or lorry with a huge capacity. “In this case, it is the small capacity vehicle that has caused more damage to the environment than the truck. It is baffling to note that this was not obvious to government bureaucrats despite advice given to them” said Kaferapanjira.

The carbon tax is due when renewing the Certificate of Fitness (CoF) of a motor vehicle at the Directorate of Road Traffic and Safety Services (DRTSS) where Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) has created offices to facilitate the payment of the tax.

On the other hand, Consumers Association of Malawi executive director John Kapito observed that while taxes are punitive to consumers, the growing number of vehicles and their impact on the environment needs to be managed.