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Program (FIRP) and improved ability to target the poorest categories of people
(Duchoslav and Kenamu 2018). Gender inequalities in access to services such as
agricultural extension contribute to women smallholders having poorer access to
knowledge and advice relating to climate-smart agriculture than male farmers
(Kakota et al. 2017). The World Bank (2018) places gender inequality as a foundational issue that needs to be addressed, along with weak governance, in order to
break the cycle of low growth and slow poverty reduction in Malawi.
Demographic factors such as population growth, urbanization and migration are
the fifth category of drivers in the food system framework. According to WB (2018),
the Malawian population is expected to increase from 17 million people in 2017 to
around 34 million people in 2038, in spite of a reduction in the total fertility rate.
Urbanization has been rather slow, and migration is occurring on a rural-to-rural
basis (NSO 2017). The poverty level in urban areas is as low as 17% compared with
57% in rural areas (WB 2018). Urbanization will probably increase in the years
ahead as land scarcity escalates and farming is perceived more as a poverty trap than
a prosperous livelihood opportunity.
The five different categories of drivers reviewed above shape the food supply
chain, the food security situation and the nutritional and health outcomes in Malawi.
The food supply chain is characterized by low farm-level productivity, a high degree
of farm-level self-consumption of food, limited sales outside of local markets, high
marketing costs, few storage facilities, limited processing and value addition and the
limited role of retail outlets/supermarkets in the food system. However, the agricultural sector plays an important economic role, as tobacco, tea and sugar constitute
most of the Malawian export market. The fourth integrated household survey provides recent data and the possibility for comparison over time, regarding the food
and nutrition security situation (NSO 2017). Based on the IHS4 data, IFPRI found a
dramatic decline in household food security in Malawi from 2010/2011 to 2016/2017,
as more than half of the households fall into the category very low food security in
2016/2017, up from 32% to 61% (IFPRI 2018). The proportion of households experiencing food shortage in the 12 months preceding the survey amounted to 73%
(NSO 2017). The food insecurity situation is more serious for female-headed households than male-headed households (NSO 2017). Different mechanisms to cope with
food insecurity such as the consumption of less preferred foods, limiting portion
sizes and reducing the number of daily meals were used more frequently in 2016/2017
than in 2010/2011 (IFPRI 2018). In the Global Hunger Index, which is based on
undernourishment, child wasting, child stunting and child mortality, Malawi is
ranked as number 87 out of 119 countries (von Grebmer et al. 2018). The proportion
of undernourished people in the population has, according to the Global Hunger
Index, increased from 21.8% in 2010 to 26.3% in 2016 (von Grebmer et al. 2018).
IFPRI (2018) reports that the percentage of stunted children declined between
2010/2011 and 2016/2017, whilst the proportion of children who were underweight
or wasting increased. The general decline in food and nutrition security from the
third to the fourth integrated household survey is indeed worrisome. This unfortunate
trend can be partly explained by the 2015 flooding and 2016 drought and, to some
Policy and Action for Food and Climate Uncertainties in Malawi
Program (FIRP) and improved ability to target the poorest categories of people
(Duchoslav and Kenamu 2018). Gender inequalities in access to services such as
agricultural extension contribute to women smallholders having poorer access to
knowledge and advice relating to climate-smart agriculture than male farmers
(Kakota et al. 2017). The World Bank (2018) places gender inequality as a foundational issue that needs to be addressed, along with weak governance, in order to
break the cycle of low growth and slow poverty reduction in Malawi.
Demographic factors such as population growth, urbanization and migration are
the fifth category of drivers in the food system framework. According to WB (2018),
the Malawian population is expected to increase from 17 million people in 2017 to
around 34 million people in 2038, in spite of a reduction in the total fertility rate.
Urbanization has been rather slow, and migration is occurring on a rural-to-rural
basis (NSO 2017). The poverty level in urban areas is as low as 17% compared with
57% in rural areas (WB 2018). Urbanization will probably increase in the years
ahead as land scarcity escalates and farming is perceived more as a poverty trap than
a prosperous livelihood opportunity.
The five different categories of drivers reviewed above shape the food supply
chain, the food security situation and the nutritional and health outcomes in Malawi.
The food supply chain is characterized by low farm-level productivity, a high degree
of farm-level self-consumption of food, limited sales outside of local markets, high
marketing costs, few storage facilities, limited processing and value addition and the
limited role of retail outlets/supermarkets in the food system. However, the agricultural sector plays an important economic role, as tobacco, tea and sugar constitute
most of the Malawian export market. The fourth integrated household survey provides recent data and the possibility for comparison over time, regarding the food
and nutrition security situation (NSO 2017). Based on the IHS4 data, IFPRI found a
dramatic decline in household food security in Malawi from 2010/2011 to 2016/2017,
as more than half of the households fall into the category very low food security in
2016/2017, up from 32% to 61% (IFPRI 2018). The proportion of households experiencing food shortage in the 12 months preceding the survey amounted to 73%
(NSO 2017). The food insecurity situation is more serious for female-headed households than male-headed households (NSO 2017). Different mechanisms to cope with
food insecurity such as the consumption of less preferred foods, limiting portion
sizes and reducing the number of daily meals were used more frequently in 2016/2017
than in 2010/2011 (IFPRI 2018). In the Global Hunger Index, which is based on
undernourishment, child wasting, child stunting and child mortality, Malawi is
ranked as number 87 out of 119 countries (von Grebmer et al. 2018). The proportion
of undernourished people in the population has, according to the Global Hunger
Index, increased from 21.8% in 2010 to 26.3% in 2016 (von Grebmer et al. 2018).
IFPRI (2018) reports that the percentage of stunted children declined between
2010/2011 and 2016/2017, whilst the proportion of children who were underweight
or wasting increased. The general decline in food and nutrition security from the
third to the fourth integrated household survey is indeed worrisome. This unfortunate
trend can be partly explained by the 2015 flooding and 2016 drought and, to some
Policy and Action for Food and Climate Uncertainties in Malawi