National food security conditions remain favorable. However, the food insecure population in southern Malawi has increased from 147,000 to 275,000. There is a need for urgent action to scale up the response. Although the number of food insecure households in Balaka, Zomba, Chikwawa, and Nsanje has increased, there is no need for external food assistance, because the Malawi government has more than 130,000 tons of maize in the strategic grain reserve for humanitarian responses.
Rain has started in all three regions of Malawi. Agricultural activities include land preparation, acquisition of farm inputs, and planting. The Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services has projected a high likelihood of floods in the northern part of the country and prolonged dry spells in southern part. The government has raised awareness of the likelihood of these hazards in the relevant areas and is developing a national contingency plan in case of emergency.
Although the government provided the maize for DoDMA to start the humanitarian response in September, the response will not start until the end of November. This is because DoDMA did not have funds to pay for transportation costs, and it requested that WFP implement the response; in late October, the latter managed to source enough funding to deliver the food to 147,000 people.
