President Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera on Thursday received Letters of Credence from the newly-designated High Commissioner, Ms Fiona Ritchie, at Kamuzu Palace after which the two held deliberations on bilateral matters of mutual interest.

High Commissioner Ritchie replaces David Beer who finished his tour of duty a couple of months ago.

The Malawi leader said Malawi continues to draw valuable outcomes from her bilateral ties with the United Kindgom.

“We have agreed to continue collaborating on all issues of mutual interest to strengthen our historic ties and attain shared prosperity for our people,” he said.

The new envoy said she was delighted for her new role and expects to further efforts in strengthening the ties between the two nations in many key areas such as trade, investment, education, health, agriculture and governance.    

“The UK is proud of its long and deep friendship with Malawi and I look forward to taking this partnership to even greater heights, championing Malawi in the UK and internationally and supporting Malawi’s own ambitions to drive economic growth, promote freedom and democracy, and deliver accountable public services for its people.” said Ritchie.

Before assuming the role of British High Commissioner, Ritchie was Development Director at the British High Commission, Lilongwe. She has held various roles in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in the UK. She has also represented the UK at UN Headquarters in New York and supported development programmes in South Sudan, Afghanistan and Iraq.