Deal with climate change or continue with food aid—WVM

World Vision Malawi (WVM) has said unless the country deals with issues of climate change, many households will continue relying on food assistance.

WVM deputy national director Fordson Kafweku said this in Blantyre on Monday on the sidelines of a WVM and Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (Mvac) Response Project Lessons Learnt workshop.

He said: “It is common knowledge that climate change is real and we are here because of its effects which if we do not take advantage of the environment, we will have ourselves to blame.

“The increasing and more frequent droughts and floods impacting on Malawi is a sign that more needs to be done in the areas of disaster risk reduction.”

The Mvac Food Insecurity Assessment Exercise projected that 2.8 million people in 25 districts will be food insecure and require relief assistance worth $146 million (about K83.4 billion) to meet their food needs.

WVM has been working with government and WFP to reach out to 580 000 people with food distribution, cash transfer and other livelihood interventions in Chitipa, Mangochi, Neno, Mwanza, Zomba and Chikwawa.

Director for Disaster Response and Recovery in the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) Scholastica Chidyaonga commended WVM for continued commitment to implement the humanitarian response programme in partnership with government and World Food Programme (WFP).

She said: “The chronic food insecurity levels have become evident in some parts of the country in the wake of unreliable rainfall patterns.”