“Food security means having, at all times, both physical and economic access to sufficient food to meet dietary needs for a productive and healthy life. A family is food secure when its members do not live in hunger or fear of hunger.” – USAID
Chronic food insecurity in Malawi, where over 70% of the population of about 19.1 million people is living below the international poverty line of $1.90/day, is driven by abject poverty, recurrent shocks, poor policies, and implementation as well as reliance on weak livelihood strategies.
The 2023 IPC analysis for Malawi released on 18 August 2023 indicated that 3 million people representing 15 percent of the total population are experiencing high acute food insecurity IPC Phase 3, Crisis, in 28 districts and four cities. This situation will prevail from June to September 2023 for the aforementioned population.
There’s a food shortage in Malawi. In another report released on 12 September 2023 from the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, 4.4 million Malawians, representing 22 percent of the country’s population, are facing food shortages. The situation is expected to worsen from October to March 2024.
Effects
Food insecurity can cause serious health issues when people have to choose between spending money on food and medicine or healthcare. Food insecurity can make it more difficult for a child to learn and grow. Food insecurity can lead to difficult decisions like choosing between food and rent, bills, and transportation.
Longitudinal data suggest that children’s learning outcomes suffer when they regularly experience hunger and that nearly every aspect of physical and mental function is hurt as well. Food insecurity affects concentration, memory, mood, and motor skills, all of which a child needs to be able to be successful in school.
Hunger and Child Development
Research shows an association between food insecurity and delayed development in young children; risk of chronic illnesses like asthma and anemia; and behavioral problems like hyperactivity, anxiety, and aggression in school-age children.
The annual cost of food insecurity is $130.5 billion due to illness costs linked to hunger and food insecurity. $19.2 billion – the value of poor educational outcomes and lower lifetime earnings linked to hunger and food insecurity.
Food insecurity is associated with a 257% higher risk of anxiety and a 253% higher risk of depression.
Research shows an association between food insecurity and delayed development in young children; risk of chronic illnesses like asthma and anemia; and behavioral problems like hyperactivity, anxiety, and aggression in school-age children.
According to an IPC Chronic Food Insecurity Report, approximately 5.4 million people in Malawi living in rural and secondary urban centers are facing Moderate or Severe chronic food insecurity (IPC CFI Levels 3 and 4) due to abject poverty and recurrent shocks, among other drivers.
Between October 2022 and March 2023, the situation was expected to deteriorate, with 3.8 million people in Malawi (20% of the population) expected to face high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3), an increase of 7% compared to the current period. Indeed, this security had deteriorated to high and surprising levels as ADMARC depots continued to remain closed without opening for people to buy maize. The most disappointing fact of all is that ADMARC depots do not have the Maize people are looking for.
Solutions
How can we end hunger in Malawi? The main levers for a “Zero Hunger 2030”, as derived from the formula below, are: firstly, increasing land area for agriculture, secondly, improving productivity, thirdly, reducing loss and waste, and finally, increasing net food import. We assume the population growth and demand per capita beyond our influence in the short term (2030)
Providing extensive irrigation to the crop can help Malawi. Irrigation development leads to higher production, which implies increased consumption of inputs, as well as higher production receipts for the farmer. Given the interdependence of the economy.
Finally, the government must avoid corruption. Many countries with emerging economies suffer from a high level of corruption that slows their overall development. The entire society is affected as a result of the inefficient allocation of resources, the presence of a shadow economy, and low-quality food production, education, and healthcare