Evaluation of Starter Pack 2 Technical background Statistical Services Centre University of Reading Malawi 23 August 2000

Background Objectives of Starter Pack Difficulty in measuring the net impact of Starter PackDifficulty in measuring the net impact of Starter Pack

Objectives of Starter Pack To increase food production, in particular for maize To combat household food insecurity, particularly in the most vulnerable farm families Provision of legume crops to help improve soil fertility and diet

Difficulty in measuring the net impact of Starter Pack Difficulty in finding a baseline for comparison Year to year changes affected by weather All farmers were eligible Variation in size of effects depending on farmer characteristics such as wealth, sex, location, etc

How to assess the impact of SP? Looking at the multi-dimensional aspects of the impact of Starter Pack Triangulating the estimates of production and months of food produced through –Year to year comparisons –Recipients versus non-recipients –Farmers perceptions and experience –Independent measures of impact from each module in the evaluation.

Modular approach Module 1: Agronomic SurveyModule 1 Module 2: Microeconomic Impact and Willingness to PayModule 2 Module 3: Gender and Intra-household DistributionModule 3 Module 4: Sustainable Agriculture and BiodiversityModule 4 Module 5: Ground Truth Study for SP Logistics Unit Starter Pack RegisterModule 5

Selection of sites Random selection of villages and households within villages Stratification by FEWS poverty and food security indices (M2), food security index (M3) and sphere of influence clusters (M4) An optimal number of sites has been selected within the resources available These elements will make it possible to reach generalisable conclusions and capture variability

Module 1: Agronomic Survey Consultant: National Statistical Office Coverage: National 200 Enumeration Areas covering all RDPs in the country 2992 households visited 3527 individuals interviewed Methodology: household survey and field visits

Module 2: Microeconomic Impact and Willingness to Pay Consultant: Mzuzu ADD, Ministry of Agriculture. Team leader: Mr Francis Nyirenda participatory preliminary study followed by a household survey The study visited 120 villages distributed in 30 EPAs. Stratification by Poverty Index and Sphere of influence (VAM 1996). 1,200 households visited Quantitative and qualitative methods of research were combined

Module 2 Map of EPAs covered and Number of villages visited

Module 3: Gender and Intra- household Distribution Consultant: Chancellor College. Gender Studies and Outreach Unit. Team Leader: Dr Lucy Binauli Preliminary phase based on participatory workshops Main phase based on restricted participatory methods combined with a short questionnaire Visited 48 villages in 24 EPAs throughout the country Consistent methodology and structured information recording used in all sites to allow integration of results

Module 3 Map of EPAs covered and Number of villages visited

Module 4: Sustainable Agriculture and Biodiversity Consultants: Elizabeth Cromwell (ODI), Patrick Kambewa (Chancellor College), Richard Mwanza (Concern Universal), Rowland Chirwa (Chitedze Research Station) and Kwera (NGO) Participatory study of 30 villages randomly selected in the whole of Malawi using the VAM (1996) classification of EPAs by Sphere of Influence

Module 4 Map of EPAs covered and Number of villages visited

Module 5: Ground Truth Study for SPLU Consultants: McNewman Msowoya, Mzuzu ADD, Peter Wingfield-Digby, Ian Wilson Census of 54 villages Comparison with the registration data for Starter Pack 2 Comparison with the census 1998 results Assessment of the registration process in those villages.

Module 5 Map of EPAs covered