Overview
Malawi has faced economic challenges with high inflation and currency devaluation. This has affected the lives of the poorest, with 2.8 million people lacking sufficient access to food. These problems were partly a result of the El Niño weather phenomenon which can bring erratic rains, prolonged dry spells and floods. Climate change and adverse weather conditions continue to be an increasing threat to food production.
Our work
Tearfund has been operating in Malawi since 2003 and works across the country. The major focus areas of our work include building up communities’ ability to cope with climate change, responding to emergencies, and setting up small scale community savings groups. We are also prioritising work that ensures people have access to enough nutritious food all year round, even in times of crisis and disaster.
Tearfund and our partners are promoting a process known as church and community transformation – working with local churches to empower their local community to escape poverty and become more resilient to disasters. This has led to local churches working in the areas of children at risk, HIV and AIDS, water and sanitation, girls’ and boys’ empowerment, and advocacy.
Our partners are promoting a scheme known as Foundations for Farming, which shows farmers and small growers how to harvest up to ten times more food on their land, even as temperatures in the region rise.
Tearfund is also a member of CISANET, a civil society network for agencies that seek to influence national agricultural policies on behalf of small scale farmers.
Our impact
- 109,250 people now have access to clean water.
- 118,531 people have been supported through HIV and AIDS work.
- 117,067 children at risk of child labour and malnutrition have been supported through Tearfund partner programmes.
- 6,240 people have been supported in disasters.
- 180,818 people have been supported through programmes to help people access sufficient food and become more resilient to disasters.
