Shelter from the Storm? : Household-Level Impacts of, and Responses to, the 2015 Floods in Malawi
As extreme weather events intensify due to climate change, it becomes ever more critical to understand how vulnerable households are to these events and the mechanisms households can rely on to minimize losses effectively. This paper analyzes the i...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/535231504895279116/Shelter-from-the-storm-household-level-impacts-of-and-responses-to-the-2015-floods-in-Malawi http://hdl.handle.net/10986/28366 |
| Summary: | As extreme weather events intensify due
to climate change, it becomes ever more critical to
understand how vulnerable households are to these events and
the mechanisms households can rely on to minimize losses
effectively. This paper analyzes the impacts of the floods
that occurred during the 2014/15 growing season in Malawi,
using a two-period panel data set. The results show that
while yields were dramatically lower for households severely
affected by the floods, drops in food consumption
expenditures and calories per capita were less dramatic.
However, dietary quality, as captured by the food
consumption score, was significantly lower for
flood-affected households. Although access to social safety
nets increased food consumption outcomes, particularly for
those in moderately-affected areas, the proportion of
households with access to certain safety net programs was
lower in 2015 compared with 2013. The latter finding
suggests that linking these programs more closely to
disaster relief efforts could substantially improve welfare
outcomes during and after a natural disaster. Finally,
risk-coping strategies, including financial account
ownership, access to off-farm income sources, and adult
children living away from home, were generally ineffective
in mitigating the negative impacts of the floods. |
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