National Bank of Malawi (NBM) has given Media Institute of Southern Africa(MISA) Malawi Chapter K700,000 towards the World Press Freedom Day commemorations to be held on May 7 at Sunbird Nkopola in Mangochi.

During the presentation National Bank has advised journalists in Malawi to write more about issues of overpopulation and urban migration, describing them as some key challenges facing Malawi's future.NBM's Head of Treasury and Investment Banking, Harry Mukaka, said the media has potential to help Malawi control overpopulation and urban migration.

"Malawi's populatuon is just too big for the size of the country. Zambia is six times bigger than Malawi but they only have 14 million people while we are 16 million. Very soon, there will be no more space in Malawi to accomodate all the people," said Mukaka.

He said it is high time the media took up the challenge of sensitizing Malawians on the risk posed by overpopulation to the future of the country. Mukaka also said increased migration of rural people into urban areas was another challenge facing Malawi, saying there is an increased urban poverty because of people who move to cities with the hope of finding jobs but end up in the streets and slum dwellings.

"It is important to encourage people to stay in their rural homes instead of moving to towns and cities chaotically. The government just needs to increase rural development and provide all amenities people look for within their areas,"he said.Mukaka said increased reporting by the media on poverty in urban areas cannot only discourage rural to urban migration but also influence increased investment by the government on rural development.

He said the support the support NBM has provided to MISA-Malawi is aimed at enabling the media to discuss how they can improve their contribution to Malawi's democracy and development through reporting on key matters affecting the country such as overpopulation and urban poverty.

MISA-Malawi chairperson, Thom Khanje, thanked NBM for the donation, saying it will go long in making this year's World Press Freedom Day Celebrations successful and fruitful.

"NBM has been a key partner and we thank them once again for coming forward with this generous donation when we knocked on the door looking for support," said Khanje.