Our projects in Malawi

Mitigating the effects of climate change through sustainable natural resource management and agricultural innovations to improve livelihoods and food security amongst poor and marginalised households

In Malawi there is a need to improve the management of natural resources in order to reduce the effects of climate change and improve peoples’ livelihoods. The environment has been heavily depleted in Malawi due to unsustainable farming practices, failure of public policies and heavy deforestation. There is increased recognition in Malawi of the need to involve, empower and employ the rural masses who are poor and marginalised in environmental management projects, and enhance the role of women and young people in environmental conservation.

Progressio will therefore strengthen local partners’ capacity to advocate and campaign for policy, practices and structural influence, and for the development and implementation of good practices in environmental management. In this regard, there is the need to empower and promote self-reliance of partners and communities in sustainable utilisation and management of the environment.

Duration: 4 years
Start date: April 2010
End date: March 2014

Principal local partners:
Catholic Development Commission
Environment Africa
Malawi Organic Growers' Association
Training Support for Partners

Principal funder(s):
Irish Aid

RICA objectives*:

Theme 2: Sustainable environment
Goal: Poor and marginalised people will have improved quality of life through more equitable and sustainable management of natural resources, especially in the light of climate change and resource scarcity. 

Objective 2.1 Sustainable farming
To promote agro-ecology and sustainable, equitable farming approaches and access to markets in order to increase quality of life for poor and marginalised people. 

Objective 2.2 Sustainable natural resource management
To promote sustainable management of forest, coastal and water resources for the benefit of poor and marginalised people. 

Objective 2.3 Environmental advocacy
To ensure poor people have sustainable and equitable access to natural resources, including addressing unsustainable patterns of global production and consumption in a context of climate change, resource scarcity and degradation.

Expected results:

Result 1: Promotion of agro-ecology and sustainable, climate resilient, equitable farming approaches and access to markets in order to increase quality of life for poor and marginalised people.

Result 2: Promotion of sustainable management of forest and water resources for the benefit of poor and marginalised people.

Result 3: Ensuring that poor people have sustainable and equitable access to natural resources, including addressing unsustainable patterns of global production and consumption in a context of climate change, resource scarcity and degradation.

Approx. cost p.a. (pounds sterling):
2010-11: £246,027
2011-12: £214,652
2012-13: £196,938
2013-14: £185,003

* RICA (Regular Impact and Capacity Assessment) is our monitoring and evaluation framework. You can read more about how we use this to measure progress and outcomes in our accountability framework. You can also read the ‘route map’ showing the impact and outcomes we are striving to achieve across all of our work, and the indicators and means of verification that we will use to measure our progress.