Climate Resilience through Shock-Sensitive Social Protection: The Role of Social Protection Systems during Climate Shocks in Malawi

Abstract

Malawi is prone to compounding climate shocks, the main climate risks being extreme rainfall/floods and dry spells. To provide support to poor and vulnerable households, the country has an established social protection system, including a Social Cash Transfer Program (SCTP), which contains shock-sensitive social protection mechanisms to increase the coping capacity of beneficiaries to climate shocks. The purpose of this research is to investigate how the social protection system performs during climate shocks from the perspective of beneficiaries and what changes beneficiaries would like within these structures. This research builds on primary data collected through semi-structured interviews with beneficiaries of the SCTP in Phalombe and Blantyre Districts and district- and national-level government officials. This study’s results reveal gaps within the existing structures, including deficiency in transfer consistency, transfer amounts, support coverage, and poor info dissemination regarding SCTP and impending climate shocks. Beneficiaries’ desired changes to the structures relate to transfer consistency, shorter transfer intervals, increased transfer amounts, and increased program support to both have resources and information available regarding impending climate shocks. Further research is needed on transfer timeliness, transfer consistency, program messaging, and program sufficiency, to enable SCTP to become shock-sensitive by anticipating shocks and provide timely support.

Popular Abstract

As climate change get more severe, households in southern Malawi are dealing with impacts of weather-related events in their daily lives. Cash support from a social protection program provides support to households dealing with climate change impacts. But how well does the social protection program cover the needs of the households dealing directly with climate impacts? The purpose of this research was to talk to households receiving support from the social protection program, hear their perspectives and experiences, compare this to accounts from government officials, and understand how well the current social protection program covered the needs of households facing climate impacts.
This research was based on semi-structured interviews with individuals from households receiving cash transfers from the social protection program in two districts in southern Malawi, and interviews with government officials. The social protection program was a critical factor for households to meet their daily needs. However, challenges with the timing and amount of transfers, and communication related to the cash program and climate impacts made it hard for households to act before weather-related events. This resulted in households struggling to cover their needs in between cash transfers, making them more vulnerable to climate impacts. Overall, this research found that the main challenges with the social protection program is related to:
• Coverage of the cash transfers and the needs of beneficiaries.
• The intervals between and the timing of the cash transfers.
• Communication about and understanding of the social protection program and climate impacts.
• The cash transfer amounts and payments.
The existing structures of the social protection program were not designed or used to provide support before climate impacts, but to provide regular support and additional support after climate impacts. Prolonged intervals between cash transfers and the low amount of cash transfers resulted in households struggling to prepare before and deal with the consequences after climate impacts. There also seemed to be a gap in the program, which only focused on providing cash, but not providing additional information related to the program or climate impacts. An attempt to provide cash support in anticipation of climate impacts by using forecasts and pre-established funding was not providing support in time to cover the needs of households. What the research show is that the changes which households wish for the program related to improving the consistency of cash transfers, to increase the amount of the transfers, and to receive information related to the program, the cash transfers, and climate impacts. Further research is encouraged to look further into aspects of timeliness, consistency, messaging, and the changing needs of households to make cash transfers more flexible.

• author: Meier, Pernille Gram
• supervisor: Per Becker
• organization: Division of Risk Management and Societal Safety
• course: VBRM15 20241
• year: 2024
• type: H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
• subject: Earth and Environmental Sciences; Social Sciences; Technology and Engineering
• keywords: social protection, climate shocks, shock-sensitive social protection, shock-responsive social protection, absorptive capacity, anticipatory capacity, adaptive capacity, anticipatory action, cash transfers, climate resilience, Malawi
• language: English
• additional info: This research was funded by the Danish Red Cross, and the research was conducted in cooperation with and with support from the Danish Red Cross, in partnership with the Malawi Red Cross.
• id: 9167120
• date added to LUP: 2024-06-24 11:25:42
• date last changed: 2024-06-24 11:25:42