Between 2014 and 2016 unprecedented and consecutive climatic shocks ravaged Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world. The largest ever emergency relief operation in the country’s history ensued. The pathways and extent to which the humanitarian response protected livelihoods remain under researched.

The book uses an economic lens to identify the main features of climate-smart agriculture (CSA), its likely impact, and the challenges associated with its implementation. Drawing upon theory and concepts from agricultural development, institutional, and resource economics, this book expands and formalizes the conceptual foundations of CSA.

As extreme weather events intensify due to climate change, it becomes ever more critical to understand how vulnerable households are to these events and the mechanisms households can rely on to minimize losses effectively.

Considerations of risk and vulnerability are key to understanding the dynamics of poverty in rural Malawi. This study measures vulnerability to consumption shortfalls and analyzes its sources using a two-period panel of 2,789 households, drawn from the 2010 Third Integrated Household Survey and the 2013 Integrated Household Panel Survey.

TheFAO has released a publication that assesses incentives and conditioning factors relating to adaptation strategies and their impact on crop productivity in Malawi. The study finds that there is no single strategy for adaptation, which is driven by a number of structural and capacity-related variables.

Meeting the food demand of a global population expected to reach 9.1 billion in 2050 and over 10 billion by the end of the century will require major changes in agricultural production systems. Improving cropland management is key to increasing crop productivity without further degrading soil and water resources.

There are a wide range of agriculture-based practices and technologies that have the potential to increase food production and the adaptive capacity of the food production system, as well as reduce emissions or enhance carbon storage in agricultural soils and biomass.