1. Talking with Malawian youth about food insecurity: policy implications
Terri Ballard, Evance Kazembe and Christopher Manyamba
Presentation for the 2014 annual meeting of APHA
Session on Experiences of food insecurity of children and youth in multiple countries

2. Background
In 2013, focus groups were held with youth and adults in rural and semi-urban areas of Malawi to assist with linguistic adaptation of a food security scale into local languages. Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and FAO.
In 2013, FAO administered the 8-item Food Insecurity Experience scale through the Gallup World Poll - a nationally representative sample of individual Malawians aged15 and older
This allowed disaggregation of food security status by age and educational attainment, important information for policy formulation to reduce food insecurity

3. Talking with youth – what they had to say
Interviewed youths demonstrated cognitive awareness of how food insecurity is experienced and how they can assume responsibility themselves for managing food resources.
When asked how, strategies to boost household economic activities were mentioned such as augmenting household income from diversifying own agricultural production or switching to cash crop farming and other agricultural strategies.
Only a few mentioned pursuit of education or training to alleviate food security concerns.

4. Talking with youth in Malawi
Most female youths felt that they are traded off in marriage in exchange for livestock (dowry) to boost household consumption;
Good planning of income and food in reserves, during and after rainy season, is a prerequisite condition for food security and other aspects of social protection;
Some of the youth advocated for provision
of food with nutritional value as a supplement
for improving learning skills and acquiring a
decent job
Youth are 41% more FS and 48% less severely FI compared to those over 50 However, rates of severe food insecurity are very high in all age classes.

5. Food insecurity and educational attainment by age group, Malawi
Youth are somewhat less food insecure than older groups but the rates are very high even for the youngest adults. Still only 24% of youth had gone beyond primary school.
There were no significant gender differences in having more than primary school education in respondents < 25, while in older persons, women were much less likely to have higher education.
Gallup World Poll, 2013. 5

6. Risk factors for food insecurity in Malawi
Being food insecure is associated with not having an education beyond primary school and with being older than 25 years of age
Odds ratios for food insecurity
at any level
Risk factor
OR (95% CI)
Primary education or less
3.2 (2.5 – 4.0)
Age 25 or older
1.6 (1.2 – 2.0)
The model showed that low educational level had a strong influence on developing food insecurity. Older age was also a risk factor although less strong that education.
Gallup World Poll, 2013.

7. Current policies programmes to train and educate youth
The Skills Development Programme aims at developing the skills of youth living and working in the informal sector for the improvement of technical and entrepreneurial skills to increase employment / business prospects
The Community Based Youth Cooperatives empowerment programme promotes entrepreneurship amongst the youth through direct training and financial empowerment of youth groups, in communities to identify projects that are profitable and sustainable within own communities e.g. fruit processing, fishing, small scale irrigation schemes etc.
Farmer field schools and farmer business schools can provide youth who want to choose a career in agriculture necessary skills to build a future.

8. Current policies programmes to train and educate youth
Apprenticeship skills training programmes-has been implemented in order to make it more flexible and responsive to the demands of the labour market.
The Small Enterprise Development (SED) is also one of the programs addressing skills training for wage/self employment and increased access to incomes in the informal sector and targets small enterprises

9. Obstacles to youth participation in educational and training opportunities
Lack of access to and control over productive resources
Labour market discriminations often result into higher unemployment rates among the youth especially for young women
Lack of markets or small markets for some of the innovative programmes developed to train youth
Potential youth entrepreneurs lack access to credit, not only because they are a few micro-finance institutions, but also because they are an underrepresented group and lack sufficient collateral
Discouragement from being out of the labour force is higher among young people who are trying to pursue higher education, as their fellow peers are already earning income from the informal workforce

10. Policy implications
In 2013, while Malawian youth were less food insecure than older persons, almost half of them were classified as severely food insecure.
Age-specific data on food security status of Malawians over time will help monitor trends and impact of interventions to prevent food insecurity
Youth-specific policies and interventions on vocational training and promotion of higher education may help to interrupt the cycle of poverty and food insecurity
Talking to youth to understand their perspectives on their present and future provides direct and specific information needed for promoting successful programmes
It is important to bring youth to the table in discussions on employment, agriculture and climate change.

11. Presenter Disclosures
Terri Ballard, Evance Kazembe, Christopher Manyamba
The following personal financial relationships with commercial interests relevant to this presentation existed during the past 12 months:
“No relationships to disclose”