Resource information
This study builds a profile of the
status of poverty and vulnerability in Malawi. Malawi is a
small land-locked country, with one of the highest
population densities in Sub-Saharan Africa, and one of the
lowest per capita income levels in the world. Almost 90
percent of the population lives in rural areas, and is
mostly engaged in smallholder, rain-fed agriculture. Most
people are therefore highly vulnerable to annual rainfall
volatility. The majority of households cultivate very small
landholdings, largely for subsistence. As a result, poverty
is pervasive and not merely the situation of the lowest
economic groups. Therefore, while this report focuses on the
least-well-off sections of the population, the analysis
provides valuable information to accelerate wealth creation
and economic growth for the whole of Malawi. This synthesis
report presents the main findings and policy recommendations
stemming from the analysis. Due to the length and detail of
this study, the 'full report' presenting the
detailed analysis and results underpinning these policy
recommendations is available as a separate publication. This
report highlights some of the key characteristics and causes
of poverty in Malawi, and focuses on the main sources of
risk affecting households, namely food insecurity and health
shocks. Based on these findings, the report goes on to
develop a set of policy recommendations for widely shared
growth and poverty reduction, and for enabling the most
vulnerable to make a living. Finally, the report also
provides recommendations for strengthening the monitoring
and evaluation systems of poverty reduction strategies, so
that policy makers and Malawian society can better track the
effectiveness of the policies pursued, and inform future
policy choices.
