Overview
Food security is a pressing concern in Malawi largely as a result of chronic poverty and natural hazards such as drought and flooding. Across the country, more than 3.3 million people are estimated to be severely food insecure (IPC 3 and above), though this number is expected to decrease as the 2019 harvest season progresses.?Needs are the greatest in southern districts such as Mangochi, Chikwawa, and Dezda.
Approximately 50% of Malawi’s population falls below the poverty line and 25% live in extreme poverty, which increases vulnerability to food insecurity.?Periodic flooding is also an important driver of vulnerability to food insecurity, and frequently leads to the destruction of crops and productive assets when it occurs. In March 2019, heavy rains associated with Cyclone Idai caused widespread flooding in Southern Malawi, inundating large amounts of farmland only a few weeks before the start of the main harvest season.?More than 730,000 people are estimated in need of food assistance in flood-affected areas, and it is likely that flooding will continue to have a localised negative impact on food security and livelihoods into the future.?
Latest Developments
No significant recent humanitarian developments. This crisis is being monitored by our analysis team.
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Key Figures
INFORM Global Crisis Severity Index
Crisis Severity: 3.7
Impact: 2.6
Humanitarian Conditions: 4
Complexity: 3.8
Access Constraints: 1
Information courtesy of ACAPS. https://www.acaps.org/
10 Common Operating Datasets or CCCM-tagged datsets are on the Humanitarian Data Exchange:
- Malawi administrative level 0-3 population statistics - Malawi National Statistics Office - 09/03/2018
- Malawi Displacement Data - Site Assessment - Idai - [IOM DTM] - International Organization for Migration (IOM) - 04/07/2019
- Malawi - Displacement Tracking Matrix - Malawi Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA), International Organization for Migration (IOM), Shelter Cluster - 03/06/2015