Achieving Food and Nutrition Security: Lessons Learned from the Integrated Food Security Programme (IFSP), Mulanje, Malawi

Abstract

This report presents findings of a review of an Integrated Food Security Programme (IFSP) implemented by GTZ in Malawi, from 1997 through 2004.1 The review contributes to the ongoing international search for best practices in programming for food security. It is not an evaluation in the conventional sense, but a broader assessment of lessons learned. The review concludes that the IFSP in Mulanje was successful in most of its aims. Not only were conclusions of the 2004 Final Evaluation Report confirmed, many of the gains identified then have been sustained. This represents an important “proof of concept” of this particular approach to integrated programming. Successes can be identified as helping bring: a) positives changes in food security (measured by outcomes across multiple sectors); b) changed thinking and behaviors at community level (that persist a decade later where “early adopters” have continued to innovate); and c) new approaches to tackling food insecurity that have been adopted by the public sector locally and nationally. The IFSP has influenced government thinking on food and nutrition security more broadly, leading to many of its principles being embedded in current national policies.