Table 4 Selected national food and agriculture policies in Malawi
Policy | Year | Goal(s)/objectives | Key considerations to FAO recommendations | Policy challenges |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Food Security and Nutrition Policy | 1990 | To improve food security through increased agricultural production, improved employment, capacity development, and income transfers to the very poor | Focus is on food security rather than on improving nutrition | Did not give adequate attention to nutrition Did not include operationalization plan for nutrition components and budget for nutrition initiatives Did not provide capacity for implementation |
Food Security Policy | 2006 | To significantly improve food security of the population. The goal implies increasing agricultural productivity as well as diversity and sustainable agricultural growth and development | Promoting access to nutritious foods was included Women’s empowerment and equitable distribution of income through improvement of their knowledge of market functions was mentioned Contains multi-sector food and nutrition security joint task force | Included strategies to improve food availability, access and stability but lack strategies on food utilization Did not include strategies to increase production of nutrient-rich foods, to retain food processing to retain nutrients, and increasing market access for smallholder farmers Lacked nutrition objectives and indicators Lacked implementation approaches |
The National Nutrition Policy | 2007 | To provide policy and technical guidance to policy makers and nutrition stakeholders in designing, development and implementation of nutrition programs, projects and interventions that will effectively contribute to improved nutrition status of all Malawians and the country’s economic prosperity | Vowed to incorporate nutrition in all sectoral policies for a multi-sector approach and increased budget allocation for nutrition intervention implementation Addressed key determinants of nutritional status including food-based approaches (i.e., dietary diversification) Highlights roles of the agriculture sector: nutrition education provision, promotion of food processing and storage techniques | Lack of capacity and trained personnel limited policy implementation |
The National Nutrition Policy and Strategic Plan | 2009 | To have a well-nourished Malawi nation with sound human resource that effectively contributes to the economic growth and prosperity of the country | Includes nutrition indicators and commitment to increasing nutrient-rich food production Establishment of multi-sectoral coordination is a priority area Promotes diet diversification and nutrition education and awareness | Does not contain strategies to improve food processing to retain nutrients Does not contain strategies to increase market access for smallholder farmers Failed to recognize women’s constraints in accessing nutritious foods |
National Agricultural Policy | 2016 | To achieve sustainable agricultural transformation that will result in significant growth of the agricultural sector, expanding incomes for farm households, improved food and nutrition security for all Malawians, and increased agricultural exports | Contains nutrition-related objectives and Explicit linkages to the agriculture sector and promotes multi-sectoral approaches Promotes production and utilization of diverse nutritious foods The Ministry of Agriculture was given the mandate to mainstream nutrition in the agriculture sector which involved strengthening nutrition linkages with agricultural subsectors, conduct nutrition training, and support nutrition linkages in agricultural programs and policies Contains a focus on empowering women and targeting vulnerable groups | No quantitative objectives are linked to the priority area Food and Nutrition Security |
The National Multi-Sector Nutrition Policy (2018–2022) | 2018 | A well-nourished Malawian population that effectively contributes to the economic growth and prosperity of the country | Prevention and management of overweight and nutrition-related NCDs is a priority area Aims to promote nutrition-sensitive interventions in core sectors Promotes gender equality and improvement to women’s decision-making power for access to nutrition Promotes nutrition education for positive behavior change Focus on partnerships in the production and processing of nutritious foods The Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development is considered the responsible body for food and nutrition security and will support the production of diverse, nutritious crops | Lacks attention on increasing market access for smallholder farmers Does not contain a focus on improving natural resources (i.e., water, soil) for agricultural food production |