PARTNERSHIP FOR CHANGE CHRISTIAN AID Malawi Strategy 2012 17
Partnership for Change Christian Aid Malawi Strategy 2012 17 We believe that at the root of poverty is a lack of power the power to have your say and be heard, or to know your rights and demand them Christian Aid/Natalie Dale WHO WE ARE, WHAT WE DO Christian Aid is an international organisation that insists the world can and must be swiftly changed to one where everyone can live a full life, free from poverty. We work globally for profound change that eradicates the causes of poverty, striving to achieve equality, dignity and freedom for all, regardless of faith or nationality. We are part of a wider movement for social justice. We have an integrated approach to poverty eradication, working worldwide on humanitarian relief, long-term development, specific advocacy issues and campaigns to expose the scandal of poverty by challenging and changing systems and institutions that favour the rich and powerful over the poor and marginalised. From Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, Christian Aid works in some of the world s poorest communities, supporting projects on the basis of need, not religion, ethnicity or nationality. We work with, and through, partners including civil society organisations (CSOs), research institutions, churches, faith groups and social movements, as well as governments, the private sector and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). In 2011/12, Christian Aid gave grants to 578 partner organisations across Africa, Asia and the Middle East and Latin America and the Caribbean. Our total income was 95.5m (55.9bn kwacha), including 36.7m (21.6bn kwacha) in funding from governments and other institutions. Christian Aid Malawi supported 11 partners with grants of close to 1.6m (943m kwacha) in the past year. OUR GLOBAL STRATEGY At Christian Aid, we believe human action is responsible for the underlying causes of poverty and that when people work together, the world can be changed. This thinking has framed our new corporate strategy, Partnership for Change. We believe that at the root of poverty is a lack of power the power to have your say and be heard, or to know your rights and demand them. It is clear to us that poverty can be eradicated only through helping people secure power to help themselves. Christian Aid has identified five areas on which to focus our work: 1. Power to change institutions We want to see all people having the power to influence institutions so that the decisions affecting their lives are made responsibly and fairly. 2. The right to essential services We want to see all people able to fulfil their right to access the services essential for a healthy, secure life. 3. Fair shares in a constrained world We want to see all people have a fair and sustainable share of the world s resources. 4. Equality for all We want to see a more inclusive world where identity gender, ethnicity, caste, religion, class and sexual orientation is no longer a barrier to equal treatment. 5. Tackling violence and building peace We want to see vulnerable people protected from violence and living in peace. Christian Aid Malawi s new strategy is centred on people-led development and is deeply rooted in our faith identity, a culture of openness, inclusiveness and honesty and the goals of Partnership for Change. 2
A COUNTRY FACING MANY CHALLENGES Malawi is among the world s most densely populated and least developed countries. Around 55 per cent of people live on less than US$1 a day. There is widespread and chronic food insecurity and malnutrition and HIV prevalence is high. With maternal, infant and child mortality rates among the world s highest, the effects of poverty are often most keenly felt by women and children. Knowledge of healthy behaviour is poor in Malawi and its health sector is weak, with shortages of skilled health workers, a lack of essential drugs and poor health management information systems. Malawi s economy is largely agricultural with about 80 per cent of the population living in rural areas and agriculture accounting for more than a third of GDP and 90 per cent of exports. However, poor producers obtain low prices and have limited access to markets as a result of low productivity and a lack of finance and infrastructure. The country has been affected by climate change with rains becoming unreliable, and in some parts inadequate, for the production of traditional food crops such as maize. The tobacco sector is key for short-term growth as it accounts for more than half of exports. But, in recent years, the impact of World Health Organization (WHO) regulations on tobacco production and consumption has seen levels of production dwindle and prices decline. It is clear that a future vested in the tobacco industry is unsustainable and efforts are needed to revitalise and diversify rural economies. The economy depends on substantial assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations, yet Malawi s government faces many challenges, including developing a market economy, improving education facilities, tackling environmental problems, addressing the rapidly growing problem of HIV and satisfying these foreign donors at a time when fiscal discipline is being tightened. To diversify the economy, Malawi s government has embarked on the extraction of minerals and rare metals, bringing an influx of interest from multinational companies amid calls from CSOs for greater transparency. However, the government must still address barriers to greater investment such as unreliable power supplies, water shortages, poor telecommunications infrastructure, and the high costs of services. CHRISTIAN AID IN MALAWI Christian Aid has been working in Malawi for close to 20 years on projects focused mainly on resilience, disaster risk response and HIV treatment and prevention. We support vulnerable communities to improve health and build resilience by participating in and Poor producers obtain low prices and have limited access to markets influencing development at policy level and on the ground. With our partners, we contribute to Christian Aid s essential purpose by empowering poor and marginalised communities and individuals to find practical and sustainable ways of rooting out poverty and to be actively involved in decisions and opportunities that affect them. Christian Aid s programmes in Malawi have included: Disaster response: the Department for International Developmentfunded Building Disaster Resilient Communities (BDRC) programme, which built on our previous emergency and rural livelihoods experience and strengthened our expertise in disaster response and resilience the DIPECHO Disaster Risk Reduction programme in Chikwawa District was supported by three rounds of funding focusing on building the capacity of vulnerable communities to prepare, anticipate and respond to climate change- related disasters. 3 Christian Aid/Vicki Couchman Christian Aid/Vicki Couchman
Partnership for Change Christian Aid Malawi Strategy 2012 17 Resilience: food security projects in Chikwawa, Mzimba, Salima, Nsanje, Karonga and Chitipa districts, including conservation agriculture, new infrastructure, irrigation development and the provision of pumps a pilot project exploring seepage irrigation pro-poor market development initiatives, focusing mainly on rice in Karonga District the lessons learnt from DIPECHO and BDRC acted as a launch pad for the ongoing DFID, Irish Aid and Norwegian Embassy-funded Enhancing Community Resilience Programme (ECRP) (2011 2016) a livelihoods project in Phalombe District, including support for crop production, livestock production, grain reserves, beekeeping, fish ponds, afforestation and dam building. Health: Scottish Executive-funded projects on sexual and reproductive health and HIV (2006 2013) including: work with the Christian Health Association of Malawi to establish youth-friendly services, train personnel and scale up community HIV and sexual and reproductive health services through community volunteers and outreach programmes work with Theatre for a Change and Malawi s Ministry of Education to promote HIV behaviour change, gender rights and life- skills, targeting all 10 of Malawi s teacher training colleges and 3,500 primary school teachers annually the consortium-led Empowerment for Health and Livelihoods project, focusing on holistic HIV and AIDS programming using the SAVE approach safer practices, access to treatment and nutrition, voluntary counselling and testing and empowerment and national advocacy our Anti-HIV Draft Bill Campaign (2009 2011) working with MANERELA+ we advocated against the passing of the bill, which could have led to increased discrimination, lobbying Malawi s parliament, cabinet and vice president, and engaging local and international NGOs to support the campaign. The bill was eventually withdrawn for further consultation. Christian Aid Malawi has unique experience and an excellent reputation in analysing vulnerability and designing programmes that support resilience and disaster risk reduction. When combined with Christian Aid s emerging expertise on market development, this leaves us well placed to make a significant contribution in Malawi. Our new strategy will focus on scaling up proven effective approaches to improving food security and resilience. Our health work is also particularly valuable because our partners are among the few organisations that reach remote areas where the most vulnerable communities live. This work has involved significant advocacy elements and direct service delivery. Our new strategy will focus on supporting communities to demand improved access to services and will signal a move away from direct service delivery a distinctive approach in Malawi. Our vision is of a self- sustained, healthy and resilient Malawi free from poverty Christian Aid/Natalie Dale 4
Community mobilisation and awareness through health education and behaviour change communication. Evidence-based advocacy informed by participatory power and gender analysis through partners and strategic alliances. Strengthening systems through partnerships with existing health service delivery structures, and capacity building between local partners/ communities and those systems. Communities have increased knowledge and confidence to respond to health issues affecting women, children and youths. Increased understanding of the root causes of poor health for youths, women and children. More and stronger partnerships among institutions, communities and with government. More women, children and youths willing to take appropriate steps against HIV, malaria and MCH conditions. Greater collective commitment towards a shared vision in addressing health issues affecting women, children and youths. Increased learning, collaboration and sharing of data for planning, implementation and resource allocation. Reduced HIV infections, cases of malaria, and mortality from MCH conditions. More influence by communities/csos on government health priorities and holding them accountable for delivery of essential healthcare services. Poor and marginalised children, women and youths have improved health status. Increased access to good, affordable essential healthcare. More and better community care, support and referral programmes. More resources for community provision of essential healthcare services. HEALTH AND HIV THEORY OF CHANGE Mobilise communities and strengthen advocacy efforts. Support communities to access sustainable energy systems. Support the development of fair and inclusive markets. Communities have greater knowledge about the sustainable management of natural resources. Increased knowledge on policy issues affecting development efforts. Communities participate in policy dialogue and influence. Increased use of renewable energy for lighting and cooking. Markets improve for poor farmers so they have greater access to finance and inputs, are better able to negotiate in the market and develop private sector relationships. Raise awareness and provide technical expertise and information on climate- smart agriculture and disaster risk management. Changes in government policy and practice. Households have increased income from savings on energy and fewer incidences of respiratory illnesses. Vulnerable households have increased their incomes and agricultural output. RESILIENT LIVELIHOODS THEORY OF CHANGE Communities implement climate- smart agriculture and DRR initiatives. Better use of sustainable natural resources at all levels. Households have improved health. Farmers re-invest in agriculture, leading to greater productivity or other income-generation activities or increased savings. Farmers have surplus crops for lean periods. Agricultural production less prone to fluctuations; household assets are maintained. Households more resilient to climate change and market shocks. Communities more able to bounce back after natural disasters. 5
Partnership for Change Christian Aid Malawi Strategy 2012 17 OUR NEW STRATEGY FOR MALAWI Our new strategy for Malawi contributes to several of Christian Aid s global strategic goals. We will work to secure the rights of poor and marginalised communities to essential health services, by both strengthening systems run by government and other organisations and improving people s health-seeking behaviour and attitudes. Our livelihoods work, which promotes the sustainable management of natural resources, builds the resilience of communities against natural disasters and improves market access, is shaped by Christian Aid s fair shares in a constrained world objective. We will empower people and poor communities to change institutions by building their capacity to press local government for better health services and influence market actors and other institutions to achieve outcomes that strengthen their livelihoods. We will target poor and marginalised communities, especially smallholder farmers and producer communities, women, children and youths and those at risk from climate change, to promote equality for all. Our main objectives will be complemented by work on access to renewable energy, which will save poor people money, improve their health and build resilience. Response and risk reduction initiatives will be developed alongside communities and partners and our country emergency contingency plan will ensure vulnerable people can anticipate, prepare and respond to disasters. Objective 1 We will strengthen the resilience and wealth of communities through improved food security, disaster preparedness and access to markets. Sustainable production Christian Aid will promote sustainable agricultural practices that increase productivity and protect the environment. We will integrate climate science into our programme, ensuring farmers have the information and skills to adapt to climate change. We will help develop early warning systems in areas susceptible to disasters and weather forecasting systems that inform the decisions of even the most isolated farmers. Market access and profitability Our programme will support farmers to market their produce on a fair and equal basis, by: supporting smallholder producers and entrepreneurs to take part in more sustainable and profitable local and international value chains, specifically seeking to increase the participation of women and other vulnerable groups. We will use a participatory markets systems development (PMSD) approach to change the way market systems operate. We will bring market actors together to plan locally owned market interventions that address key blockages. Some of the actions will include: developing associations and cooperatives that enhance farmers bargaining power and enable them to access markets encouraging the provision of business support services for farmers such as microfinance and information provision (including ICT platforms where appropriate), which enable them to increase productivity and engage more equitably in the market; we will also promote a lead farmer approach to increase access to agricultural support services working with our colleagues in the UK to secure investment for enterprises that improve the functioning of markets and support poor people s participation and benefits promoting the use of evidence from community-based projects for both local and national level advocacy on policies and practice; communities will also be equipped to advocate and influence government policy on issues affecting them, including mining, natural resource management, agriculture and microfinance. For our market access work we will build new types of partnerships with the private sector. Christian Aid will act as a broker not principally as a grant provider bringing together and building the capacity of a range of market actors to develop projects led by the private sector, not Christian Aid itself. What we will achieve The desired outcomes of our livelihoods work in Malawi are: poor farmers using land management techniques that ensure sustainability and protect them from the impact of climate change the assets of poor farmers in disaster-prone areas are protected from hazards such as floods marginalised women and men have greater influence and participate more in markets to increase their income and assets; markets are more inclusive and provide more opportunities for poor people policies that support sustainable agriculture, climate change adaptation and improved market access for the poor are strengthened and effectively implemented as a result of civil society advocacy. 6
Objective 2 We will improve access to quality preventive, curative and palliative health services for Malawi s poor and marginalised communities. Our health work aims to improve both the demand for health services and their supply. Our approach ensures services will respond to a community s particular needs. We will support work in and with communities where the need is greatest. Empowering communities Christian Aid partners will engage communities including women, children and people living with HIV to identify, demand and actively sustain the services they require for better health. This work will be underpinned by analysis and a deeper understanding of the root causes of poor health and poor access to quality services. Every project will be delivered through existing health service systems, ensuring two-way capacity-building between local partners and communities and current health services. Healthcare system strengthening We aim to support improvements in community health systems and seek greater integration with wider healthcare infrastructure in Malawi to tackle malaria, HIV and maternal and child health (MCH) issues. The programme will support local partners to design, deliver and evaluate projects that address gaps in health service provision and to work alongside government and other organisations, sharing results. In this way, best practice can be promoted and replicated. We will build strong partnerships with government, dovetailing our work with existing systems to ensure sustainability and avoid the development of parallel working structures. Advocacy on policy and practice Christian Aid aims to create an enabling environment for the provision of quality health services, by strengthening evidencebased and community-driven advocacy with national and local governments, aimed at increasing funding and accountability. We will also continue to advocate for the adoption of the SAVE approach as a tool to promote HIV prevention, care and support. The programme will also support partners to work with alliances, networks and coalitions, creating a unified voice to influence government, decision-makers and service providers on policy and practice. What we will achieve The desired outcomes of our health work in Malawi are: a larger number of high-quality, well-used and effective services that meet the most important health needs of poor people strengthened capacity of the poor and civil society to influence health service provision. We will support work in and with communities where the need is greatest 7 Christian Aid/Sarah Filbey
OUR PARTNERS IN malawi Malawi Seventh Day Adventist HIV and AIDS Programme (MASHAP) Foundation for Community Support Services (FOCUS) Theatre for a Change (TFAC) Malawi Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Affected by HIV and AIDS (MANARELA+) Galaxy Media Evangelical Association of Malawi (EAM) Eagles Relief and Development (Eagles) Churches Action in Relief and Development (CARD) Centre for Environmental Policy and Advocacy (CEPA) Environment Africa Wildlife and Environment Society of Malawi (WESM) Contact us For more information on Christian Aid Malawi please contact us. Christian Aid Malawi Amina House Along Paul Kagame Road, Area 4 Lilongwe, Malawi T: +265 1 752 944/945 E: malawi-info@christian-aid.org W: christianaid.org.uk/malawi Front-cover photo: Climate change campaigners dance and demonstrate at a ceremony organised to coincide with the Caravan of Hope s arrival in Lilongwe, Malawi. The Caravan of Hope was a 7,000km campaigning road trip from Burundi to South Africa, to demand a fair deal on climate for Africa at the UNFCCC (climate change conference) in Durban. Christian Aid/Ally Carnwath Christian Aid is a member of ACT an alliance of more than 130 churches and related organisations that work together in humanitarian assistance, advocacy and development giving us the ability to respond quickly and easily to emergencies the world over. UK registered charity no. 1105851 Company no. 5171525. Registration no: C366/2008 with CONGOMA. The Christian Aid name and logo are trademarks of Christian Aid; Poverty Over is a trademark of Christian Aid. Christian Aid April 2013 13-477-J1283