13, 869 households to benefit in lean season response

Neno, September 18, Mana: Neno District Council through the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) on Wednesday rolled out the implementation of the 2024/25 lean season food insecurity response programme targeting 13, 868 food insecure households in the district.

Speaking during the launch at Lisungwi Community Day Secondary Ground in the area of Traditional Authority Symon in Neno, DoDMA Director Responsible for Disaster Recovery and Resilience, Peter Chimangeni said the response food programme is government’s commitment in making sure that people have food.

Chimangeni said the response follows the Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC) report which projected that 5.7 million people will be food insecure in the country.

He said Neno has been chosen to be amongst the first districts to launch the food response programme because according to MVAC report, the food situation is dire as it has a food deficit of six months alongside Mwanza and Blantyre districts.

“Government is committed to alleviate the challenges being faced by the communities; hence, the donation to cushion them during this season and in Neno, 62, 000 people which is 13, 896 households will benefit,” Chimangeni said.

He said the food insecurity problem in the country is being aggravated by issues of climate change as the country has since 2015 been facing issues of disasters and the department is finding ways to make sure that the country becomes resilient by encouraging farmers to adopt irrigation farming and climate smart agriculture.

Chimangeni, therefore, disclosed that the period for receiving the relief food varies due to the severity as some districts will receive relief food for a period of six months, others four and others for three months.

District Commissioner for Neno, Rosemary Nawasha advised beneficiaries of the lean season food insecurity response programme not to sell the maize they have received but to use it for consumption.

Nawasha said Neno district is one of the worst affected districts in the last growing season due to the dry spell induced by El-Nino.

“Government through DoDMA has provided this relief maize in lean season food insecurity response programme as such use if for the intended purpose,” she said.

Nawasha, therefore, reiterated government’s commitment to ensuring that no one dies of hunger that is why they have started distributing the October supplies early.

Speaking earlier, Traditional Authority Symon thanked government for the food assistance, saying it will alleviate the suffering among his subjects, noting that his area has been affected by hunger as most people did not harvest enough food.

One of the beneficiaries from Chaponda village in the same area, Saidi Msanama thanked government for the timely response, saying it will bail out his household of nine members from hunger.

He said the maize will help him feed his family as he prepares for the 2024-25 farming season.

President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera on May 23, declared 23 districts out of 28 in the country as state of disaster which were affected by El-Nino.

The districts are Nsanje, Chikwawa, Mulanje, Phalombe, Blantyre, Chiradzulu, Thyolo, Zomba, Mangochi, Balaka, Machinga, Phalombe, Mwanza, Neno, Lilongwe, Dedza, Dowa, Mchinji, Ntchisi, Ntcheu, Nkhotakota, Kasungu and Karonga.