Responding to COVID-19 Learning from Program Adaptation in Malawi

The program supports the implementation of the Malawi National Resilience Strategy, which aims to guide investments in agriculture, reduce the impacts of shocks, and promote household resilience. Titukulane operates in Zomba and Mangochi districts, two areas heavily affected by climate change. The program targets ultra-poor and chronically vulnerable households that are food insecure even during normal agricultural seasons. These households face limited access to land, low use of advanced technology, and limited opportunities for non-farm employment, contributing to chronic food insecurity and poverty. The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated these challenges, affecting multiple spheres of life, including mobility, access to social services, and an increase in gender-based violence. To better understand the needs of women, the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Community Development, in collaboration with CARE, UN Agencies, and others, conducted the Malawi COVID Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) using CARE's RGA Framework. The RGA highlighted discriminatory systemic inequities that lock women out of decision-making, putting adolescent girls and vulnerable populations at risk of not accessing needed services for maternal, obstetric, and gender-based violence. In response to the pandemic, Titukulane developed an adaptive management plan to repurpose project activities and resources to meet the immediate needs of beneficiaries. The program worked with district and national-level management and administrative systems, participating in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH), Food Security, Economic Empowerment, and Gender and Protection Cluster meetings. Titukulane also collaborated with the District Civil Protection Committee (DCPC) in Zomba and Mangochi districts to design better responses to COVID-19. As part of its COVID-19 adaptive management plan, Titukulane implemented several activities, including awareness campaigns, training of healthcare workers in COVID-19 case management, procurement and delivery of non-food items and WASH equipment, and learning and adaptive management. The program learned several critical lessons, centered mostly on WASH, and emphasized the importance of targeted engagement with influencers, contextualizing messages to the situation of beneficiaries, and promoting alternative means and traditional solutions to addressing challenges. Titukulane's Chief of Party, Nivo Ranaivoarivelo, handed PPE and hand-washing buckets to Mangochi District Council Chairperson and District Commissioner, demonstrating the program's commitment to supporting the COVID-19 response in Malawi. The program's experience in responding to the pandemic has provided valuable lessons for future programming and implementation, highlighting the importance of adaptability, community engagement, and addressing gender inequalities and GBV vulnerability.