It is easy enough to calculate how much the Government of Malawi spends on subsidizing chemical fertilizer. Last year, for example, this was MWK 120 billion (about US$ 150 million) taking up over 50% of the agricultural budget.

Although geographically distant, there are multiple channels through which Russia’s invasion of Ukraine can affect the lives of Malawians.

Malawi’s Affordable Inputs Program (AIP) currently combines an economic and a social objective, respectively: (i) increasing agricultural production; and (ii) assisting poor farming households.

Malawi has a long history of public intervention programs in the fertilizer market, going back to 1992.

Between April and July 2021, IFPRI Malawi conducted its second, nationwide crowdsourcing exercise on the maize and soybean prices paid to farmers.

By increasing their production for the market and realizing greater incomes, smallholder farming households can significantly accelerate local agricultural and rural economic development.

Price band schemes have been used in many countries to try and set minimum and maximum prices between which staple food prices vary.

While contract farming provides opportunities to link smallholder farmers to markets, its sustainability depends on how the interests of both farmers and buyers are addressed.

Malawi is unusual in having not one, but two commodity exchanges (Comex): The Agricultural Commodity Exchange (ACE), established in 2006, and Auction Holdings Commodity Exchange (AHCX) Ltd, established in 2013.