Malawi

GOAL is currently in the process of transitioning out of Malawi after 20 successful years of operations between 2002 and 2022.

As of mid-2022, GOAL is focusing efforts on a sustainable exit of our existing programmes, ensuring our communities, staff and stakeholders are appropriately supported during the transition.

In 2021, GOAL promoted resilient wellbeing by helping people to survive crises, maintain their health, build food security, and grow their incomes. In its programming, GOAL focused on disaster risk reduction, WASH, nutrition, agricultural livelihoods, cash transfers and financial inclusion across five districts in the Southern Region and in Dzaleka, where Malawi’s principal refugee camp is based.

Our Work in Malawi

Emergency Response

Resilient Health

Food & Nutrition Security

Sustainable Livelihoods

Covid-19 Response

Building community resilience

GOAL has a long history of responding to disasters in Malawi. In 2019, GOAL was a first responder to regional flooding – providing emergency food and non-food items to affected communities. The team also provided regular support to food insecure households by granting food and cash distributions during the lean season.

GOAL worked closely with the Department of Disaster Management Affairs to strengthen Civil Protection Committee structures, support community hazard mapping and warning system development. The team used GOAL’s Analysis of Resilience in Communities to Disaster (ARC-D) toolkit to measure and analyse community resilience and plan appropriate responses. We also provided technical services to external stakeholders.

Improving WASH and sexual reproductive health

GOAL has extensive experience in the fields of WASH and sexual reproductive health.
In Malawi, WASH activities improved rural water supply and included the facilitation of water point operation/maintenance committees – as well as Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) and demand-led sanitation marketing. GOAL also promoted menstrual hygiene management for girls in school.

Our sexual and reproductive health programme focused largely on youth. Working with young people in and out of school, we supported youth-led analysis and action, promoted positive behaviour change and helped service providers respond to the needs of vulnerable young people. GOAL’s innovative programming also promoted a nexus between climate change and family planning.

Food security through education and livelihoods

GOAL takes an integrated approach to Food & Nutrition Security. Closely linked to Sustainable Livelihoods, in Malawi we sought to diversify production, improve food access and reduce seasonal food insecurity.

We used GOAL’s innovative Nutrition Impact Positive Practices (NIPP) Approach to tackle the underlying causes of malnutrition at a community level, through behaviour change and practical action including micro-gardening and cooking demonstrations. GOAL worked in close collaboration with Village Health Committees and Health Surveillance Assistants, to train families and caregivers to screen their children for malnutrition using simple MUAC (Mid Upper Arm Circumference) measuring tapes, thereby enhancing early detection of malnutrition cases.

Building business skills and maximising value

Building on our work in Nutrition & Food Security, GOAL supported resilience-building efforts that ranged from diversified cropping and small-scale irrigation to capacity building for climate smart agriculture. The team also linked farmers with weather information systems for improved subsistence planning, as well as facilitated watershed management, resource conservation and enterprise development.

GOAL also worked to strengthen agricultural and livestock value chains. We helped individuals build financial literacy and business management skills, linking them to informal and formal financial services to build long-term economic security.

GOAL's Covid-19 response in Malawi

In Malawi, we implemented Covid-19 response activity across the country, working closely with Government and other humanitarian actors engaged in the response. We procured a range of protective materials, together with key sanitation items, and distributed these to health facilities and targeted households/communities.

GOAL has supported the Magoti Mothers’ group in Nsanje District in southern Malawi to expand its sewing circle to start making reusable health masks. The group – which sews reusable sanitary pads for disadvantaged teenage girls – made 700 masks, 300 of which were purchased by GOAL. This enterprise is an extra income stream for the women who are struggling to make ends meet.

Key achievements

In 2021, GOAL's programmes reached approximately 1.2 million people in Malawi, which included delivering Covid-19 related interventions
GOAL Malawi facilitated seed and livestock fairs for more than 20,000 smallholder farmers and strengthened their links with commercial agricultural enterprises for long-term partnerships.
GOAL worked with over 1,500 Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) in 2021 - comprising of over 30,000 individuals - to strengthen basic business skills, increase access to external financing, and promote supplementary insurance products.
In 2021, GOAL Malawi supported 40 new Nutrition Impact Positive Practices (NIPP) groups to address the underlying causes of malnutrition. Over 13,000 peolple received NIPP training.