Malawi

In 2019, Southern Africa was hit by two of the most extreme cyclones to ever make landfall in the region, leaving a trail of destruction across Comoros, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. In March, Cyclone Idai, a category 2 cyclone, brought winds of 105 miles per hour; and just over a month later the region was struck by Cyclone Kenneth, a category 4 cyclone, with winds of 140 miles per hour. The cyclone and flooding happened right before the annual harvest season, with devastating consequences for agriculture, livestock and fisheries.

Malawi was already struggling with the impacts caused by previous flooding when the cyclones hit the country. These climate-induced disasters further escalated health, nutrition, protection, sanitation and education in emergencies. The crisis devastated communities as families lost their homes and were displaced by the disaster. Schools across the nation were damaged or destroyed, leaving thousands of students out of the classroom and putting them at risk of never returning. This disruption has also caused academic achievement and enrolment rates to plummet.

ECW’s First Emergency Response (FER) supported a swift return to learning for affected children and adolescents. The programme included damaged school reparations; the provision of educational supplies to communities; the distribution of life-saving messaging on disaster risk reduction (DRR); and the training of education personnel on psychosocial support for students. It also supported communities to ensure continued enrolment, and the government to implement disaster mitigation strategies.