Farmers celebrating warehouse constructed to enable farmers to aggregate their crops for the market. (Photo: Ministry of Agriculture – Adaptation Fund Project/Annie Malunga)

[PROJECT STORY]: Adaptation Fund in Malawi

Malawi, one of the Least Developed Countries, has experienced an increase in the frequency, intensity, and variability of weather-related shocks in recent years, including floods, droughts, dry spells, and recorded temperatures. Over the years, hotspots for these shocks have become especially evident in the Southern region of Malawi.

A project funded by the Adaptation Fund in Malawi, implemented by Malawi’s Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development with the support of the UN World Food Programme, is aimed at changing that dynamic, by building resilience in local communities. Through enhancing climate adaptation and food security of households with integrated climate risk management strategies and structured market opportunities, the project is transforming lives and livelihoods across Machinga, Zomba, and Balaka Districts.

As part of its integrated risk management approach, the project supports the design and implementation of climate risk insurance (CRI) to alleviate farmers’ vulnerability to climate-related shocks. Small-scale farmers are able to subscribe to Area Yield Index Insurance (AYII), a product that insures the value of their purchased inputs (such as farm equipment, seeds and other resources) against low yields. During the 2023-2024 agricultural season, up to 20,224 farmers were insured for a total value of US$ 4.06 million. Since the beginning of the project, up to US$ 1.9 million in insurance claims have been paid to farmers targeted by the project.

Gedion Malora, a 65-year-old farmer from Mkapa village in Machinga district, vividly remembers the struggles his family faced due to climate change impacts over the years. “Climate change threatened our livelihoods with droughts and erratic rains, jeopardizing our crop yields,” he recalls.

However, since becoming a beneficiary of the Adaptation Fund project in 2020, Gedion’s life has taken a turn for the better.

Read the full story here.