Constituting Agricultural and Food Security Policy in Malawi: Exploring the Factors that Have Driven Policy Processes in the Farm Inputs Subsidy Programme

Abstract

Political economy analyses of agricultural and food security policies in Malawi have emphasized the role played by domestic politics and, more specifically, the centralization of power in the executive. This paper builds on this perspective by exploring the view that such policies are in fact negotiated outcomes of interactions at the state–donor interface. Using interview data gathered from expert key informants and a review of publicly available data, the paper explores how certain policy drivers have interacted to shape agricultural and food security policies in Malawi. The results reveal that policy processes in the recent past have been driven and mediated by fiscal considerations, sociopolitical pressures, and pragmatism, which accounts for the unique and complex peculiarities of the Malawi context.