Blessings Chinsinga

Africa Research Institute is pleased to announce publication of Planting Ideas, an independent investigation into Malawi’s controversial home-grown subsidy scheme for small farmers. This timely study defies much of the received wisdom to argue that agricultural subsidies can be...

Malawi is the most densely populated country in southern Africa. Without affordable fertiliser and other inputs, small farmers have struggled to grow enough food from over-cultivated soils. But after successive food crises, the government of Malawi acted against the advice of...

This briefing note highlights the role of fertiliser subsidies in Malawi, the world’s fifth poorest country. Malawi has suffered recurrent poor harvests, with disastrous consequences for food security since the early 1990s. Yields have improved significantly in the past two...