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With research staff from more than 60 countries, and offices across the globe, IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.

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researcher spotlight

Samuel Benin

Samuel Benin is the Acting Director for Africa in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit. He conducts research on national strategies and public investment for accelerating food systems transformation in Africa and provides analytical support to the African Union’s CAADP Biennial Review.

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Development Strategies and Governance

Jan Duchoslav

Research Fellow

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Bio

Jan Duchoslav is a Research Fellow in IFPRI’s Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in Lilongwe, Malawi. He conducts research and outreach activities to support development policies in the areas of food security, social protection, resilience, and rural transformation. Jan has worked in Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, Uganda, and Malawi. He received his PhD in Development Economics from Wageningen University, the Netherlands. Up-to-date information and details about Jan’s research are available at his personal website.

Publications

Personal website

Google Scholar Profile

Twitter Profile

Publications

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Working Paper

Fertilizer subsidies in Malawi: From past to present

2024Benson, Todd; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; Masanjala, Winford
Details

Fertilizer subsidies in Malawi: From past to present

Malawi has been at the center of the debate on agricultural input subsidies in Africa ever since it significantly expanded its fertilizer subsidy program about two decades ago. When it did so, Malawi was a trailblazer, receiving international attention for seemingly leveraging the subsidy program to move the country from a situation characterized by food deficits and widespread hunger to crop production surpluses. In this paper we trace the history of Malawi’s subsidy program over the past 70 years, describing how the country arrived at that watershed moment earlier this century and how the subsidy program has developed since. We show how donor support for the program has wavered and how external pressure to remove the subsidy has repeatedly been unsuccessful. We also demonstrate how over the years the program’s total fiscal burden has fluctuated significantly. However, we find that since the expansion of the subsidy program in 2004, the fiscal costs of the program have shown little correlation with the maize harvest that same agricultural season. We show that the subsidy program has succeeded in raising awareness about the value of the fertilizer for increased crop productivity. However, despite its continued prominence in the country’s agricultural policy, most Malawian smallholder do not manage to grow sufficient maize to feed their households throughout the year, and every year millions depend on food assistance during the worst months of the lean season.

Year published

2024

Authors

Benson, Todd; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; Masanjala, Winford

Citation

Benson, Todd; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; and Masanjala, Winford. 2024. Fertilizer subsidies in Malawi From past to present. MaSSP Working Paper 44. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/138880

Country/Region

Malawi

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Fertilizers; Subsidies; Maize; Food Security

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Working Paper

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Working Paper

Welfare impacts of seasonal maize price fluctuations in Malawi

2024Chiwaula, Levison; Weerdt, Joachim de; Duchoslav, Jan; Goeb, Joseph; Gondwe, Anderson; Jolex, Aubrey
Details

Welfare impacts of seasonal maize price fluctuations in Malawi

Maize prices fluctuate significantly throughout the year in Malawi, creating winners and losers depending on who is selling and who is buying the staple at different times. We link maize market price data to nationally and temporally representative household survey data on maize sales and purchases to quantify welfare gains and losses throughout the year. A stable maize price would lead to only a modest increase in Malawi’s total social surplus when summed across a whole year, but a dramatic reduction in hunger during the lean season. We discuss policy options to smooth maize prices throughout the year.

Year published

2024

Authors

Chiwaula, Levison; Weerdt, Joachim de; Duchoslav, Jan; Goeb, Joseph; Gondwe, Anderson; Jolex, Aubrey

Citation

Chiwaula, Levison; De Weerdt, Joachim; Duchoslav, Jan; Goeb, Joseph; Gondwe, Anderson; and Jolex, Aubrey. 2024. Welfare impacts of seasonal maize price fluctuations in Malawi. MaSSP Working Paper 45. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/139137

Country/Region

Malawi

Keywords

Eastern Africa; Africa; Data Analysis; Economics; Households; Maize; Market Prices; Surveys

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

National Policies and Strategies

Record type

Working Paper

Resource thumbnail

Brief

Compounding stresses confront rural households in southern Malawi

2024Upton, Joanna; Duchoslav, Jan; Tennant, Elizabeth
Details

Compounding stresses confront rural households in southern Malawi

Southern Malawi has historically been less food secure than the rest of the country, and the current lean season will be no different. The Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee expects 2,460,000 people in the Southern Region (29% of its population) to require humanitarian assistance at the peak of the lean season in February and March 2024, compared to 1,560,000 people in the Central Region (18% of its population) and 388,000 people in the Northern Region (15% of its population) (MVAC 2023). The Southern Region is home to 44% of Malawi’s population, but to 56% of those in need of humanitarian assistance. More people in the Southern Region are in danger of going hungry in the coming months than in the Central and Northern regions combined. But who are these people, what is behind their vulnerability, and what does the future have in store for them?

Year published

2024

Authors

Upton, Joanna; Duchoslav, Jan; Tennant, Elizabeth

Citation

Upton, Joanna; Duchoslav, Jan; and Tennant, Elizabeth. 2024. Compounding stresses confront rural households in southern Malawi. MaSSP Policy Note 52. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/139431

Country/Region

Malawi

Keywords

Eastern Africa; Africa; Food Security; Households; Maize; Data; Prices; Cyclones; Crop Production

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Project

Climate Resilience

Record type

Brief

Blogs

Responding to Malawi’s impending food crisis
IFPRI Blog
 | 
May 31, 2024

Responding to Malawi’s impending food crisis

By Jan Duchoslav, Mazvita Chiduwa, Simon Denhere, Joachim De Weerdt, Rodwell Mzonde, and George Phiri

Food imports can make up for shortages if quick action is taken.

Act now to address Malawi’s looming food crisis
IFPRI Blog
 | 
April 12, 2024

Act now to address Malawi’s looming food crisis

By Jan Duchoslav, Joachim De Weerdt, and Rodwell Mzonde

Harvest shortfalls caused by severe drought conditions.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens food security in Malawi. How can the country respond?
IFPRI Blog
 | 
April 27, 2022

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens food security in Malawi. How can the country respond?

By Joachim De Weerdt and Jan Duchoslav

The poor are particularly vulnerable to rising prices of food, vegetable oils, and fertilizers.

Events

2021 ReSAKSS Conference
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

November 15 to 17, 2021

2021 ReSAKSS Conference

Virtual Event: Nov 15, 2021 – 07:00 AM to Nov 17, 2021 – 10:30 AM EST. IFPRI is participating in the virtual 2021 ReSAKSS Conference. 

31st International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE)
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

August 17 to 31, 2021

31st International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE)

Virtual Event: AUG 17, 2021 – 08:00 AM to AUG 31, 2021 08:00 PM EDT. IFPRI is participating in the 31st Conference of Agriculture Economists organized by the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE). 

Malawi Discussion of IFPRI’s 2021 Global Food Policy Report: Transforming Food Systems After COVID-19
Series/Special Event

 | 

May 5, 2021, 8:00 – 9:30 am

Malawi Discussion of IFPRI’s 2021 Global Food Policy Report: Transforming Food Systems After COVID-19

Virtual Event: MAY 05, 2021 – 08:00 AM TO 09:30 AM EDT. Malawi's discussion of IFPRI's 2021 Global Food Policy Report.