By Chisomo Kambandanga

Nkhata Bay, September 3, Mana: Commissioner for Disaster Risk Management Affairs (DoDMA) Charles Kalemba has called for consideration to decentralize the Unified Beneficiary Registry (UBR) system to local councils for it to be regularly updated and give accurate data.

Speaking Monday in Nkhata Bay during a two-day workshop on lean season response targeting and implementation, Kalemba said the UBR sometimes contains data that is not reliable.

“Apart from the Joint Emergency Food Assistance Program (JEFAP), councils use UBR to identify beneficiaries to be supported in lean season programmes. There is a problem that the UBR takes years to be updated and contains data that is outdated.

“People relocate, die and economic statuses change and for someone to have correct data for beneficiary selection in social protection programs there is a need for data that is updated at least every year,” Kalemba said.

According to Kalemba, updating the UBR yearly at the council level can be less costly than doing it at the central level hence the urgent need to decentralize updating of the UBR data just as it is done at the National Registration Bureau (NRB).

Kalemba then advised against political and local leaders’ interference in all processes involved in selection of beneficiaries in lean season response programmes.

Data Management Assistant at UBR Management Unit in the department of Economic Planning and Development, Chimwemwe Saidi said the call to regularly update data in the UBR system is a welcome idea and it is currently in the pipeline.

“We are establishing what we call a UBR dynamic update to have the data in the UBR active. Surely this will respond to some challenges raised and all we need is collaborative efforts from all stakeholders involved so that we move forward together, ’said Saidi.

In his remarks, Nkhata Bay Director of Planning and Development Edgar Chihana commended DoDMA for the training as it has reached out to all district and community representatives who are crucial in lean season response targeting and implementation processes and expressed optimism that the knowledge and skills gained will be put into good use.

According to the Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee, a total of 5.7 million people are projected to be food insecure between October 2024 and March 2025 of which 10 494 people are from Nkhata Bay.

Malawi Government through DoDMA is set to provide food assistance to these families through financial and in-kind donations mobilized from various humanitarian partners.