Malawi: Strengthening Technical and Institutional Capacity to Manage Climate and Disaster Risks

Context and Objectives

In 2015, the Government of Malawi undertook a Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) and developed a Recovery Framework with financial support from the ACP-EU NDRR Program. The Strengthening Technical and Institutional Capacity to Manage Climate and Disaster Risks project was launched in November 2018 to build on the institutional and policy needs that were identified in 2015 and to support key policy reforms in Malawi. 

One of the recommendations made by the PDNA was to better align key DRR policies in Malawi. This ACP-EU NDRR project supported the formulation and validation of a new DRM bill, by financing technical inputs to the bill. To operationalize the new DRM bill, the project supported the development of Operational Guidelines, which clarified the roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders. In addition, the project enabled a technical review of three sectoral policies: the National Urban Policy, the National Meteorology Policy, and the guidelines and roadmap for building safe and resilient schools.

An additional component to this project was added in February 2020 to facilitate the integration of climate change and DRM in urban strategies and planning in major urban centers of Malawi, as proposed by the Malawi National Urban Policy. 

Main Activities

Project activities were implemented under the following components:

• Component 1: Strengthening institutional and technical capacity of the government for managing climate and disaster risk. This component supported the formulation and validation of the new DRM bill, by financing technical inputs to the bill. Operational Guidelines were developed which clarified the roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders.

• Component 2: Strengthening Malawi's sectoral policies. The component undertook a technical review of three sectoral policies: the National Urban Policy, the National Meteorology Policy, and the guidelines and roadmap for building safer schools.

• Component 3: Comprehensive flood risk assessment for Lilongwe City. This component developed tools for city-level flood risk management and contributed to hydrologic and hydrodynamic modelling. 

Results

Government-identified priorities in the national disaster and climate agendas were successfully advanced, resulting in the adoption of crucial legislation, policies, and guidelines. These included the National Urban Policy, the National Transport Policy, the guidelines for Safer School Construction, and the completion of the Disaster Risk Management bill. The coordination of multiple sectors, namely urban, transport, and education, played a key role in advancing climate change and DRM as national agenda priorities.

Partnerships and Coordination

The key counterparts of the project were the Department of Disaster Management Affairs. Other counterparts included the Ministry of Education, Department of Urban Development, the Lilongwe City Council, as well as the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services.