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8. Cross cutting outcomes: Productive partnerships The regional dialogue also explored how stakeholders can work well together for collective action and forge powerful partnerships towards transformations of food systems. The participants noted that currently, the region has several partners working in the food systems including NGOs both local and international, faith based organizations, farmer based organizations including cooperatives, government departments, private sector players and other food industry players but they rarely work together to share lessons and best practices. This was l... Read moreinked to lack of proper coordination at regional and district level including between and among ministries, departments and agencies of the government despite existing structures in the decentralized system of governance. The participants noted that the opportunities, enablers and recommendations to transform food systems are multi-sectoral in nature, hence deliberate efforts need to be put in place for a coordinated approach at the regional and district level to ensure impact. Food systems transformation requires working together among several stakeholders such as those responsible for agriculture, nutrition, environment and climate change, infrastructure development, energy and trade. As such the participants explored and suggested mechanisms that will allow stakeholders to work together for a collective action and forge powerful partnerships. These include: • Sharing of information through sectoral periodic review, that is, through joint planning, implementation and monitoring at all levels; • Strengthen coordination amongst different stakeholders in the food chain within the district, through joint planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the activities in the food systems; strengthening/revitalizing of the District Agricultural Extension Service System (DAESS) structures for coordination; enforce punitive measures for uncompliant stakeholders to coordination efforts; • Restructure tax regimens to create conducive environment to investment especially for private sector; • Introduce affirmative measures in different sectors to enhance food systems; and • Create a conducive environment for investors like land, security, transparency and accountability.   Read less

The Agricultural Input Program (AIP) was a contentious issue with others thinking that it is a necessary evil that meets the nations’ food self-sufficiency goal. For example, the yields are at highest levels in the current season compared to the average of the last five years. On the other hand, others members felt that AIP as a social protection instrument has outlived its life span and the nation needs to graduate from it despite all the positive restructuring it has gone through over the years. Others noted that the subsidy program is good though it just needs to diversify beyond being ma... Read moreize-centric to other crops such as legumes including livestock so that it contributes fully to Action Track #1 in providing safer and healthy foods. Others also thought the program is good but needs proper targeting. Other views bordered on its net negative effect on the agricultural sector budget vote since other critical services such as research and extension suffer from low allocations though the overall agricultural budget is able to meet the Malabo target of 10% of the national budget. The other issue that came out in the Northern Region dialogue was the need to embrace indigenous food varieties and not only focus on the so-called modern/improved varieties. The promoters of the indigenous food varieties noted that such foods have high nutrition status and are resilient to climate change whilst those championing improved varieties were considering mostly on the high yielding and resilience of other varieties such as drought resistant varieties of maize. Read less

This section summarises issues coming out of the dialogue in the Northern Region. It includes food system challenges and drivers as well available opportunities and enablers to support food systems transformation. Based on these, the section also brings out some proposed action areas to improve food systems within the short term (3 years) and in the medium term (10 years). Action Track #1: Ensuring safe and nutrition food for all Current challenges • Inadequate dietary diversification exacerbated by seasonality of food availability and perishability; • Food safety challenges due to inappro... Read morepriate use of chemicals, poor food handling and processing; • High poverty levels affecting food access due to limited number of livelihood options (full reliance on subsistence farming); and • Poor road infrastructure and hilly topography in many areas of the Northern Region that affect accessibility and distribution of food supplies within the region. Drivers (Causes) • Limited crop diversification with too much focus on maize production system; • Poor handling of chemicals resulting in chemical contamination and pollution of food and water; • Market failures including unregulated contract farming agreements, uncompetitive prices, dysfunctional and unstructured markets; • Limited transport infrastructure resulting in uneven food supply and distribution; • Limited investment, equipment and knowledge in food value addition and processing – rice, vegetables and fruits; • Lack of enforcement of food standards and selling licences; and • Cultural values and socialization processes affecting food preparation and consumption.   Action Track #2: Shifting to sustainable consumption patterns Current Challenges • Food deficit due to poor food handling and storage, poor food budgeting, post-harvest food losses and food wastage; • Low diet diversification due to extinction of some indigenous food species, poor distribution and insufficient knowledge on food processing, preservation and utilization; and • Low supply of energy to facilitate food processing and preparation at home and industrial levels. Drivers (Causes) • Inappropriate use of pesticides including use of harmful chemicals resulting in food contamination e.g. tomatoes; • Poor post-harvest handling and management of farm produce e.g. poor storage facilities, untimely harvesting, thefts, low food budgeting skills, low food processing and food waste in cultural celebrations such as wedding and funeral ceremonies; • Poor roads network; • Lack of steady and structured markets and related infrastructure; and • Low generation capacity/overreliance on hydroelectricity and limited use of alternative energy sources. Action Track #3: Boosting nature-positive food production Current challenges • Low productivity and unsustainable food production (crops, livestock and fish). • Land degradation and low soil fertility; • Chemical pollution of food and water due to use of inappropriate pesticides and inorganic fertilizer. Also affecting aquatic life; and • Climate change induced shocks such as flooding and droughts. Drivers (Causes and Activities) • Poor road network exacerbated by flooding, erosion and siltation; • Destruction of fish breeding ecosystem due to farming near water bodies, siltation, high use of inorganic materials, overfishing and limited local monitoring control and surveillance; • Poor and unsustainable farming methods such as cultivation in marginal lands, mono-cropping, use of poor quality inputs, high pests and diseases e.g. fall army worm etc. and overdependence on rain fed agriculture; • poor market linkages; and • Poor natural resources and environmental management practices. Action Track # 4 Advancing equitable livelihoods of people involved in food systems Current Challenges • Unequal and low access to productive assets such as land, finance, insurance especially for women and youth; • High population growth; • Poor road infrastructure affecting transportation of goods and inputs; • Poor targeting in subsidy program e.g. people from Mlowe in Rumphi district being given maize seed and fertiliser coupons while they grow cassava and fish; • Low investments in industrialisation; and • Unequitable access to land. Drivers (Causes and Activities) • Cultural practices and gender stereotypes perpetuating adult male dominance and lack of control of assets by women; • Deforestation: for settlement, energy, bricks moulding, charcoal production; • Early marriages, teenage pregnancies, social cultural activities along the lakeshore areas (e.g. Nkhatabay and Karonga) limiting future livelihood activities; and • lack of key infrastructure in most of the northern region. Action Track # 5 Building resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks and stresses Current challenges • High poverty levels in rural areas making people vulnerable to shocks and stresses; • Low capacity of service providers and farmers to generate, interpret and use meteorological information; • Climate change induced natural disasters such as floods, droughts that affect crop productivity and general resilience; and • Inadequate early warning systems. Drivers (Causes) • Limited access to, and low quality of extension services; • Obsolete/old meteorological equipment and lack of innovative ways in translating information for use by the local population; • Poor road conditions and networks and political interference resulting in derailed investment in railway line transport system; and • Unsustainable natural resource management practices such as deforestation, cultivation of margin Read less

1 Action Track #1 Outcomes The opportunities for Action Track #1 to ensure safe and nutritious food for all were identified as follows: • Availability of collaborating partners and structures in implementation of projects. These partners provide agricultural information through farmer field schools, care groups, school feeding programmes; • Existence of agricultural extension and communication facilities e.g. extension workers, community radios and local health personnel e.g. Health Surveillance Assistants (HSA’s) at the local level; • Availability of new agricultural technologies e.g.... Read more storage technologies such as pics bags that have reduced post-harvest losses; • Availability of natural resources e.g. land, diverse agro-ecological zones and perennial rivers favourable for production different foods such as fruits, fish, potatoes, cassava, maize, constant water supply, all year-round rivers and streams (Lake Kazuni, South Rikuru, Rumphi river, Hewe river); and • High production potential for different agricultural commodities in some areas in the north e.g. Mphompha and Mtchenachena areas have good rainfall and agro-ecological conditions favourable producing Irish potatoes, beans, Apples, Peaches, tomato, cabbage, onions, bananas, coffee, honey); Chiweta area suitable for cassava, fish, rice; Bolero area for livestock, tobacco, maize and honey) and Katowo-Hewe area for production of ground nuts, maize, beans, honey, soybean tobacco. The major enablers identified under Action Track # 1 were as follows: • Existence of government policies, laws and regulations (e.g. agricultural policy, irrigation policy and nutrition policy). Implementation and enforcement at all levels can spur productivity; • Existing investments in the agricultural sector such as the Affordable input program and the agricultural commercialization project; • Availability of research institutions that generate knowledge and technologies to guide farmers in their agricultural activities; • Decentralized structures and funding mechanism able to trigger location specific interventions; • Existing farmer organization and structures such as cooperatives and associations; and • Local people and Malawians in the diaspora with interest to invest in farming and processing of agricultural products. Read less

2 Action Track # 2 Outcomes The opportunities identified towards shifting to sustainable consumption patterns were as follows: • Availability of structures at all levels to drive efforts towards sustainable consumption patterns e.g. presence of extension workers, and nutrition workers from Government & NGOs (e.g. Total Land Care, Find Your Feet, Self Helf Africa, National Smallholder Farmers Association of Malawi), and presence of local structures for coordination at district level e.g. District Agriculture Extension Coordinating Committee (DAECC) etc.; • High literacy levels in the no... Read morerthern region general; • Availability of natural resources such as land, perennial rivers and lakes to support irrigation; • Conducive policy environment and existing government programs; • Existing agro-processing plants e.g. for rice and coffee; • Well trained agricultural staff though not adequate; and • A network of agro-dealer shops facilitates input and output marketing. Read less

3 Action Track # 3 Outcomes The opportunities identified were as follows: • Existing policies and investments in agriculture e.g. the affordable input program and Agriculture Commercialization (AGCOM) project; • Available natural resources to harness productivity such as wet lands, perennial water bodies for irrigation and Lake Malawi for fishing; • Availability of technologies to promote sustainable production such as climate smart agriculture, conservation agriculture, permaculture, intercropping, agroforestry, land and water conservation measures; • Road network; • Decentralisatio... Read moren of service delivery and funding which could drive more location specific interventions through district councils; and • Existence of self-help initiatives among communities such as Savings Loan Groups (SLGs). Read less

The regional dialogue was held under the theme “Building healthier, sustainable and equitable food systems for a better Malawi”. The objective of the dialogue was to reflect on the status of Malawi’s food systems, identify challenges and constraints, potentials and opportunities, and game-changing solutions and ideas for its transformation, including defined roles and responsibilities from local voices at the regional level. Based on the guidelines, the dialogue centred on the five Action Tracks underpinning Food Systems Dialogues: • Action Track 1 – “Ensuring access to safe and nu... Read moretritious food for all” – participants examined whether all Malawian’s currently have access to safe and nutritious food. If not, what is it that makes it difficult for Malawians to access safe and nutritious food? • Action Track 2 – “Shifting to sustainable consumption patterns” – participants had conversations about what were the key issues affecting healthy and sustainable food consumption in Malawi? • Action Track 3 – “Boosting nature-positive production at scale” – participant examined how Malawi’s food production systems can be transformed to ensure sustainable food and nutrition security for the people. • Action Track 4 – “Advancing equitable livelihoods”– participants explored inequalities within the Malawian food systems. • Action Track 5 – “Building resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks, and stresses” – the dialogue examined actions to ensure the resilience of the Malawian Food System. The Convenors’ representative also emphasized on the need to analyse the food systems issues in consideration of existing national policies and strategies including the national aspirations enshrined in the Malawi 2063 Vision. Read less

Action Track # 2 Outcomes The opportunities identified towards shifting to sustainable consumption patterns were as follows: • Availability of natural resources that can be used to advance food system goals such as consumption of indigenous foods; • The political will and this needs to come together with citizen empowerment; • There are various/diverse stakeholders working in the food sector that need to be coordinated to enhance sustainable consumption patterns. Enablers that can allow the country to advance sustainable consumption included: • ICT Infrastructure; • Road networks/Inf... Read morerastructure; • Investment in machinery and equipment for processing; • Capacity development/human capital efforts in food systems; and • Private sector engagement and interest to invest in value addition, processing etc. Game changing priority actions The game changing priority actions under Action Track #2 were as follows: (i) Policy review and foster implementation (cross cutting across various levels, that is, ICT, markets or private sector engagement), (ii) invest in technologies/innovations for value addition, (iii) enhance knowledge levels/sensitization on food systems, nutrition, health and education system, (iv) promote post-harvest handling and management practices, (v) establish National Waste Management Strategy on food systems, (vi) support access to agri-finance (by private sector, NGO sector and small-holder farmers) to enable them invest in food systems, (vii) invest in agrobiodiversity especially protection of indigenous seeds/crops, and (viii) improve food safety standards – enforce policies and regulating standard through the Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) Read less

Action Track # 3 Outcomes The opportunities identified under Action Track # 3 to boost nature positive production were as follows: • Robust policy framework in the environmental management sector; • Fairly good political will; • Space to review and enact new legislation is always available; • Availability of unused land and water for irrigation; • Youthful population that can be exploited in nature positive production systems • Increased public private investment; • Data is also available from different research efforts to drive nature positive production; and • Space to promot... Read moree biodiversity Enablers identified included the following: • International markets; • Local expertise; • Strong network of traditional leaders; • Availability of farmer organizations; • Private sector innovation; and • Potential for value addition. Game changing priority actions The game changing priority actions under Action Track #3 were (i) enhance soil, land and water management, (ii) increase availability and access to seed technologies, (iii) enhance integrated pest management, (iv) invest in irrigation infrastructure, (v) zoning or ecological preferences for crops, (vi) ensure a just and equitable land tenure system, and (vii) promote agriculture diversification. Read less

Action Track # 4 Outcomes The opportunities that were identified under Action Track # 4 included the following: • Refocusing our policies and re-alignment to the new development blueprint (Malawi 2063 Vision) through the 10-year implementation plan; • Institutions like National Planning Commission (NPC) should steer the government machinery to align all development activities towards nationally agreed priorities; • Availability of political will to transform food systems at all levels of governance • United Nations Food System Dialogue (UNFS) offers an opportunity to realign the Nation... Read moreal Agriculture Policy (NAP), National Agriculture Investment Plan (NAIP) and other agri-food systems policies; • Review of the Land Act of 2016 provides an opportunity to address issues affecting access to land by women, youth and vulnerable groups for equitable livelihoods; and • Stakeholders and fora should advance the issue of equity in food systems. Enablers that can support the attainment of the opportunities included: • Institutional capacity building; • Policy and technical support; • Co-resource mobilization; • A shared vision that is inclusive; and • Investment in bottom-up research approaches. Game Changing Priority Action # 4 The game changing priority actions under Action Track # 4 included (i) improve productivity of small-scale farmer production systems since they promote health, climate-smart, nutrition-sensitive production, (ii) adopt diverse and appropriate improved farming practices and techniques to increase sustainable food production and productivity; (iii) promote practices that protect the biodiversity of Malawi’s indigenous and traditional foods, and natural regeneration of trees, (iv) reduce destructive farming activities such as farming in river banks that destroy natural resources (v) invest in large scale irrigation systems by government and the private sectors as rain-fed agriculture cannot sustain the food production, (vi) increase incentives to make agriculture attractive (branding) especially to the youth, (vii) increase investment in agricultural research including refining the research agenda, increasing funding and capacitating the National Research Council of Malawi so that it is able to lead and regulate research in Malawi and (viii) the need to expedite the Land Act review process to enhance sustainable land use management Read less

Action Track # 5 Outcomes The Opportunities to enhance resilience include: • A lot of attention towards climate change mitigation and adaption measures by the development partners and appropriate policies; • Availability of information through digital technologies to the vulnerable populations such as digitized and real time climate information services; • Existing social protection and safety net programs that also contribute to acquiring of productive assets; • Availability of programs focusing on climate change adaptation and mitigation measures by both public and civil society; and... Read more • Existing programs on Covid 19 as one of the major shocks affecting production and productivity. Enablers include: • Availability of social protection programs; • Availability of disaster management mechanisms to respond to different shocks and stresses faced by communities including floods and droughts, among others; and • Donors readiness to support emergence interventions. Game Changing Priority Actions # 5 The game changing priority actions under Action Track #5 covered issues at production level including (i) promoting crop diversification, (ii) use of integrated rural approaches that cut across sectoral boundaries, (iii) increasing adoption of modern agriculture technologies, (iv) strengthening advisory services across all sectors, (v) strengthening farmer organisations, and (vi) land consolidation. At processing level, the game changers were (i) provision of reliable, sustainable and clean energy, (ii) increased resource allocation to processing, (iii) improving postharvest infrastructure, and (iv) enhancing fortification of foods. For distribution, game changers included (i) establishing structured markets, (ii) supporting Micro, Small and Medium enterprises (MSMEs), and (iii) establishing special trade agreements with emerging economies and regional blocks. Finally, on consumption, the participants proposed enhancing nutritional education and diversified diets. Read less

Cross cutting outcomes: Changes to be made within 3 and 10 years This section provides areas that have to be considered in the short term (3 years) and medium term (10 years). The participants recommended that in the first 3 years, the nation should focus on the following actions: • Capacity development of farmer organizations and cooperatives; • Investments in climate smart agricultural technologies; • Digitization and privatization of the extension system; • Enhancing coordination through the National Planning Commission under a unified vision for Malawi on food systems; • Promotin... Read moreg nutrition sensitive agriculture; • Investing in irrigation of nutritive and commercial crops; and • Investing in machinery and equipment for value addition. In terms of expectations of the food systems in the next 10 years, the participants at the dialogue identified the following areas: • Promoting positive mind-set or behavioural change towards safe and healthy foods; • Promoting nutrition inclusive and sensitive food systems • Industrialisation and processing of food products, going beyond exporting of raw materials; • Enhancing food safety through legislation and investments in food safety laboratories (domesticating global food standards); • Improving gender transformative approaches across the value chains to ensure that women can participate and benefit in the food systems; • Increasing private sector involvement and enhance commercial farming • Enhancing resilience of food systems and livelihoods; • Strengthening agricultural financing mechanisms including creation of the Agriculture Development Bank; • Exploiting the youth demographic dividend in the food systems e.g. create employment opportunities, enhance innovation opportunities for young people to be involved across the value chain functions; • Strengthening the land tenure system through the review of the land laws; and • Adoption of improved technologies to enhance crop and livestock productivity. Read less

Cross cutting outcomes: Productive partnerships The national dialogue also explored how stakeholders can work well together for collective action and forge powerful partnerships towards transformations of food systems. The participants noted that currently, the country has several partners working in the food systems but they rarely work together and share lessons and best practices. This was linked to lack of proper coordination at country level between and among ministries, departments and agencies of the government. The participants noted that the opportunities, enablers and recommendations... Read more to transform food systems are multi-sectoral in nature, hence deliberate efforts need to be put in place to improve coordination. Some stakeholders noted that in most cases, some sectors leave the Ministry of Agriculture to handle all issues surrounding food systems when other ministries such as those responsible for nutrition, environment and climate change, infrastructure development, energy and trade are at the core of an efficient food system. As such, the participants explored and suggested mechanisms that will allow stakeholders to work together for a collective action and forge powerful partnerships as follows: • Develop common results framework. It was noted that there is a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework being developed under the Malawi 2063 Vision that could be leveraged among other existing frameworks; • Develop sustainability and exit strategy especially for program and projects; • Establish holistic coordinating structure for food systems so that all stakeholders and actors can work together towards a transformed food system agenda; • Enhance intra- and inter-ministerial coordination in the public sector; • Enhance cooperative’s information to improve value chain functions; • Strengthen dialogue sessions with involvement of all Ministries and stakeholders; and • Strengthen the linkage of the grassroots and the central levels for policy harnessing, coherence and enforcement. Read less

The Affordable Input Program (AIP) was a contentious issue with some participants thinking that the subsidy is a necessary evil that meets the nation’s food self-sufficiency goal. For example, in the current season, the yields are at the highest levels compared to the average of the last five years. On the other hand, other members felt that AIP is a social protection instrument that has outlived its life span and the nation needs to graduate from it despite all the positive restructuring it has gone through over the years. However, AIP needs to diversify beyond being maize-centric to other ... Read morecrops such as legumes and include livestock so that it contributes fully to Action Track #1 in providing safer and healthy foods. Other views bordered on its negative on the agricultural sector budget vote since some critical services such as research and extension suffer low allocations despite that the overall agricultural budget is able to meet the Malabo target of 10% of the national budget. Read less

The Malawi’s inaugural dialogue was held under the theme “Building healthier, sustainable and equitable food systems for a better Malawi”. The national dialogue session was the first in a series of many regional and district specific dialogues that were held in the country henceforth. The objective of the dialogue was to share information on the UNFSS and reflect on the status of Malawi’s food systems, identify challenges and constraints, potentials and opportunities, and game-changing solutions and ideas for its transformation, including defined roles and responsibilities. Based on th... Read moree guiding remarks of the Convenor, the dialogue covered all areas of the food systems and were organized around the five Action Tracks of the Food Systems Summit Dialogues: • Action Track 1 – “Ensuring access to safe and nutritious food for all” – participants examined whether all Malawians currently have access to safe and nutritious food. If not, what is it that makes it difficult for Malawians to access safe and nutritious food? • Action Track 2 – “Shifting to sustainable consumption patterns” –participants had conversations about what are the key issues affecting healthy and sustainable food consumption in Malawi. • Action Track 3 – “Boosting nature-positive production at scale” – participants examined how Malawi’s food production systems can be transformed to ensure sustainable food and nutrition security for the people. • Action Track 4 – “Advancing equitable livelihoods”– explored inequalities within the Malawian food systems. • Action Track 5 – “Building resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks, and stresses” – participants examined actions to ensure the resilience of the Malawian food system. The Convenor emphasized the need to link the dialogue sessions with existing national policies and strategies such as the Malawi 2063 Vision which has a pillar that focuses on “agricultural productivity and commercialization”. The Secretary for Agriculture noted that the Malawi’s food systems touch every aspect of human existence. She therefore encouraged delegates to focus the discussion on what would be a well-functioning food systems that have the power of bringing families, communities and nations together since if that fails, there could be disorder threatening education, health and economic outcomes. The Secretary further noted that rising incomes, rapid urbanization and growing middle classes lead to strong adjustments in dietary preferences and consumer behaviour and require public and private investments for improved food market integration. Therefore, she concluded with acknowledgement that increasing agro-food production has not reduced malnutrition levels. Therefore, the dialogue outcomes and recommendations need to feed into the new National Agricultural Policy (NAP) and the National Agricultural Investment Plan (NAIP). The presentations from session 2 provided context, noting that the landscape and mapping analysis of institutions, players, and policies will provide information useful for the prioritization of actions/interventions and policies to build a food system that deliver healthy and sustainable diets. Therefore, consensus was reached that the national dialogue is not a parallel, stand-alone process rather it is building on existing structures and it is not duplicating past efforts. It was noted that the dialogue process would be underpinned with clear principles such as (i) ensuring that sustainable healthy diets for all is the basic vision, (ii) considers food system transformation as the long-term process, (iii) takes a systems approach to this challenge, (iv) adopts an iterative approach, considers national governments as the lead in all matters of governance, (v) takes a supportive and co-creative rather than prescriptive approach, (vi) build on existing structures when feasible, (vii) create new ones only when necessary, (viii) embrace both evidence and innovation, (ix) proactively address frictions related to facts, interests, and values, and (x) approach the challenge with an attitude of learning, humility, and optimism. Read less

Action Track #1: Ensuring safe and nutrition food for all Current challenges • Low agricultural production and productivity; • Limited food and diet diversification with too much emphasis on maize and high cost of nutritious food, especially animal source foods; • Food safety challenges mostly due to lack of national level food safety policy, standards and regulations; • Limited coordination across the sectors on food security, nutrition and food safety (no delivery mechanism to enable this); and • Limited training programmes in food and nutrition in primary schools that has resulted... Read more in high rate of malnutrition especially among under 5 years of age. Drivers • Gender inequalities persist in accessing safer and health foods including incidences of gender based violence and abuse; • Policy bias towards crops, specifically maize production with very little on livestock and fisheries; • Lack and inconsistency of NAP implementation and investments e.g. no alignment of the budget to the National Agriculture Investment Plan despite the agriculture budget being over 10% of the overall national budget; • Masking of nutrition under agriculture that result into limited utilisation of processed food and lack of agriculture nutrition programmes in the national education curriculum; • Lack of food safety standards and legislation; • Unequal intra-household food distribution and mind-set towards foods e.g. Resistance to behaviour change with regard to production and consumption of nutritious foods; • Lack of nutrition sensitive safety nets and social protection programs; and • Limited linkages between agriculture extension messages and nutrition messages. Action Track #2: Shifting to sustainable consumption patterns Current Challenges • Lack of a comprehensive definition of sustainable consumption; • Limited use and consumption of indigenous foods because these are deemed inferior though highly nutritious; • High food waste and pollution; • Low dietary diversification; • Low accessibility of some food types in some parts of the country; and • Increased post-harvest food losses. Drivers • Uncoordinated actors in the food systems space; • Misconceptions and myths surrounding indigenous food types despite the high nutritive value; • Lack of knowledge in value addition and modern post-harvest management technologies that result in food waste and losses; • Poor road infrastructure to reach out to most parts of the country affecting supply and distribution of diverse food options; and • Capacity challenges in enforcement of food safety standards by the Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS). Action Track #3: Boosting nature-positive food production Current challenges • Poor soil and water management practices; • Limited access to inputs such as seedlings for afforestation and agroforestry initiatives; • Weak interventions to manage flora and fauna and their interaction thereby endangering biodiversity; and • Over-reliance on rain-fed agriculture has resulted in low productivity and production including fluctuation and seasonality of production. Drivers • Policy incoherence, contradictions and weak coordination in the environmental management and agricultural sectors; • Low awareness by actors on effective nature based practices that lead to sustainable production systems; • Poor land management and soil conservation measures; • Challenges with market access and linkages, for example input markets; and • High poverty and unemployment levels. Action Track # 4 Advancing equitable livelihoods of people involved in food systems Current Challenges • Women and youth are marginalized in the agri-food systems, in particular, on access to land; • Limited access to productive resources by women. Despite that women are the custodian of productive resources like land (in the south and central regions), they don’t have control since decisions regarding land use are dominated by men; • Limited access to financial opportunities. There are structural barriers associated with smallholder farmer access to finances; and • Limited investment in processing, marketing and value addition that creates employment and boosts the economy. Drivers • Lack of policies to enhance equitable access to productive resources by all; • Limited focus on the value chain approach which focuses on the food systems towards processing, value addition and marketing of end products; • Unconducive land laws, hence the need for thorough review to address land tenure through titling; and • Market failures: There are no marketing incentives and low enforcement of minimum prices. Action Track # 5 Building resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks and stresses Current challenges • Production challenges include low productivity due to low technology use, fragmented land size, low access to quality inputs and high pests and disease infestation; climate change challenges that lead to floods and droughts; and high lending costs/bank interest rates for farmers and these discourage to access financing; • Processing challenges included limited technology adoption, low energy availability and high post-harvest losses; and • Distribution challenges included poor road infrastructure, poor storage facilities, long distances to access inputs and outputs points, and high cost of transport. Drivers • Poor road infrastructure; • Degraded habitats due to deforestation and wanton cutting down of trees; • Poor storage facilities; • Long distances to access inputs and outputs points and high cost of transport; and • Destroyed biodiversity that has led to loss of local indigenous fo Read less

Action Track #1 Outcomes The opportunities for Action Track #1, to ensure safe and nutritious food for all were identified as follows: • Strong donor support that can be fully utilised by the new government in Malawi that is promoting change of mind-set; • Availability of diverse local foods; • Existence of a digital technology strategy can also advance positive outcomes of the food system. Technology needs to be used to harness information distribution; • New agricultural technologies are available (climate smart agriculture, new varieties and seeds); • Existing policies and strateg... Read moreies to address safer and healthy foods; • Social programmes which are in place can be expanded to support diversified production and nutrition itself by looking for support in critical areas; • Nutrition education system in place including care group model useful to disseminate information; • There are nutrition teams, with a lot of capacity and competence from national to district and local level to support nutrition sensitive programs; and • With regard to research, there is a huge amount of data, evidence that need to be put at the disposal of policy makers, private sector to understand the landscape better. Game Changing Priority Actions The game changing priority actions under Action Track # 1 were as follows: (I) promotion of bio-fortified crops for sustainability, (ii) supporting nutrition education in communication for social behaviour change towards production of diversified food and diets, (iii) coordination, linking extension and research (whereby research findings ought to reach and transform the household), (iv) allowing nutrition frontline workers to translate messages from production to consumption and they should be visiting household more often to strengthen existing social and behaviour change communication interventions, (v) promotion of food safety and hygiene practices across the food system that will entail development of food safety policy, standardisation and enactment of food safety legislation, (vi) enhancing production, food processing and marketing to ensure that there is increased access to safe and nutritious food, (vii) supporting communities to develop community driven solutions, (viii) enhancing public private partnership for effective markets for good distribution and better access to safer and health foods and (ix) ensuring that there is adequate budget allocation towards food systems aligned priorities that promote diet diversification. Read less

During the VC4, points of divergence were identified in relation to the presentations made by the panelists, as well as to opinions expressed in the chat box and interventions shared by pre-registered participants who took the floor. Among the areas with greater degree of divergence, the following themes were observed: a) map of Hunger in the Amazon region; b) support for local food production; c) strengthening dialogue with civil society in order to encourage food and nutrition security; d) construction of a governance system for the food sector; e) construction of an environmental policy tha... Read moret strengthens the tripod of sustainability: economically viable, socially fair (based on solidarity) and ecologically balanced; and f) transparency in food labeling and taxation processes. Although the discussion on the points listed above elicited divergent views, it was based on the common and shared concern with the dietary patterns available to the population in general. There is a convergence of opinions that the food and nutrition security policy must be supported by healthy eating originating from sustainable food systems, with low environmental impact, in balance and harmony with the environment. Food must also be culturally acceptable and economically accessible, be adequately available and safe. In this context, in order to increase strategies to promote adequate and healthy eating and to minimize all forms of malnutrition, all parties that integrate food systems, from production and processing to storage and distribution, must be taken into account. Brazil has encouraged actions aimed at promoting adequate and healthy eating, such as the establishment of food guidelines; financial transfers to municipalities and states for the purpose of structuring food and nutrition actions in the health area, especially in the current pandemic; incentives to the implementation of the Health at School and Healthy Growing Programs, among others. It was also observed that the SDGs should underpin all activities related to food systems. SDG 12, in particular, which deals with responsible production and consumption, should be strengthened during the Summit discussions. It is necessary to consider the availability of adequate and healthy food, at affordable prices so that it does not hamper access to other essential needs, as well as stability in access and availability of such foods. Those are the pillars of food and nutrition security. Finally, it is important to strengthen health-promoting food environments that provide healthy and sustainable food alternatives, as well as promoting education and food culture by encouraging the consumption of adequate and healthy food and by raising awareness about the importance of traditional diets. Read less

On July 8, 2021, the fourth video-conference of the Brazilian National Dialogue took place under the theme “Sustainable Food Systems: Proposals from Brazil”. It addressed the Brazilian contributions to the development of sustainable food systems, highlighting responsible production and consumption, food safety and nutrition, dietary patterns, and the reduction of food loss and waste. Special attention was given to the effects of the current Covid-19 pandemic and the importance of sustainable and resilient food systems that promote the production of healthy foods, ensuring food and nutritio... Read morenal security (FNS) for all the population. It was emphasized that food systems should contribute to economic growth, the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems, as well as to social inclusion. The initial presentations sought to showcase different Brazilian proposals for sustainable food systems. The VC4 presented contributions of the Brazilian experience in the development of sustainable food systems relevant to the current international debate on the topic, as well as identified the challenges of the multiple burden of malnutrition (coexistence of malnutrition and obesity), the relevance of Brazilian traditional diets and the positive effects of investments in research and development. While sharing best production practices, the discussions addressed the positive impact of free and fair international trade on prices and supply levels. Under the current pandemic, it became essential to improve and guarantee food security, despite the challenges at national and international supply chains. In this regard, it was emphasized the fundamental importance of the Brazilian agricultural sector in this debate, as it encompasses several agrifood systems coexisting in a sustainable way, such as agroecology, family farming and extractive systems, intensive and monoculture systems, which cover livestock systems, production of biofuels and planted forests. It was observed that modern agricultural methods are compatible with national and international standards for environmental conservation of rural properties. The VC4 also pointed out the pivotal importance of formulating policies that respect cultural differences, ethnic, racial and gender specificities, young people and traditional communities. To that effect, it was deemed important to integrate policies that aim to guarantee food and nutrition security and the protection of the right to adequate food, together with environmental protection. The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the need to promote public and private food distribution to vulnerable groups (in line with recommendations established by the Food Guidelines). Social policies aimed at water access are crucial to ensure human consumption in homes and schools and to foster food production, providing guarantee of FNS for low-income rural families living in areas with regular water shortages. Read less

The debates in VC4 identified the need to foster collaboration among all (countries, governments, producers, consumers, industries, civil society, etc.) to make sustainable food systems a global reality in the shortest possible time-frame. However, it was also evident throughout the discussions that different challenges should be addressed to advance in the development process, for example, the implementation of the SDGs and compliance with the 2030 Agenda. In this sense, it is worth remembering that the extraordinary development of the Brazilian agriculture promoted since 1970’s strengthene... Read mored economic growth and contributed to the evolution of environmental regulations, social standards, and the well-being of rural and urban communities. State investment in agricultural research, innovation and development contributed to the sustainability of food production in the country and was essential to obtain robust and consistent results, in line with the Millennium Development Goals and later to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Sustainable healthy food systems depend on permanent policies that integrate health, science, agriculture and social sectors. Climate change implies finding new solutions to adapt to problems such as droughts, pests and excess rain. In order to ensure an adequate and healthy diet and to overcome the obstacles identified in this dialogue, healthy and sustainable food systems must be developed, based on the Food and Nutrition National Policy, the Brazilian food Guidelines and other relevant principles. They (não está claro a que refere “they”) must also be supported by inter-sector public policies and protective measures that guarantee the access to food and promote a healthy and adequate diet. For Brazil, the Summit preparatory process played a positive role. It contributed to identifying the challenges faced by national food systems, especially those that are closely related to tropical agriculture. In this context, it is necessary to highlight the importance of the governance and management policies, which should be strategic, coordinated, based on scientific evidence and on qualified information, allowing the country to transform part of its natural potential into effective production, incorporating technologies at their various levels in favor of sustainability. Read less