Nankhumwa was speaking in Lilongwe during the official opening of 2019 Tobacco Industry Conference.

He clarified that what happened was just an imposition of a hold and release order which is normal in international business.

"We are still selling tobacco and other tobacco products to US. The difference is that we have to explain about the tobacco that we are sending in boarder posts emphasising that its child labour free," he said.

He said tobacco remains a strategic crop to the Malawi economy.

On November 1, 2019, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that it has issued a Withhold Release Order (WRO) on tobacco from Malawi and products containing tobacco from Malawi.

The products will be detained at all US ports of entry.

CBP issued the order based on information collected by the agency that reasonably indicates the tobacco from Malawi is produced using forced labor and forced child labor.

According to CBP’s press release on the subject, while the order will require detention of tobacco from Malawi at all US ports of entry, the WRO is not a ban.

"Rather, importers may offer proof that their tobacco and tobacco-containing products do not include tobacco from Malawi that was produced with labor prohibited under US law. Importers of shipments detained under this WRO are also provided an opportunity to export their shipments under certain circumstances."

In his speech Tobacco Commission Board Chair Inkosi Mmbelwa told the conference that TC has registered 53,000 farmers this growing season while the Organisation registered 47,000 farmers last growing season.

Mmbelwa also commended Government for the enactment of Tobacco industrial law saying the law will help to bring sanity into the tobacco industry.