Expanding Feasibility: Public-NGO Partnerships in Designing and Implementing Disaster Management Plans in Southern Malawi
Aim: The study examines strategies employed by district-level public officers to develop disaster management plans amid recurrent emergencies and resource constraints, as well as the relationships and negotiations between public and NGO stakeholders surrounding preparedness priorities.
Methods: As part of a collaboration between Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Partners in Health Malawi/Abwenzi Pa Za Umoyo, data were collected through in-depth interviews with 28 stakeholders in Neno and Chikwawa Districts, Malawi, during August-September 2024, supplemented by document analysis of policy papers related to Cyclones Idai, Ana, and Freddy.
Results: Both public and NGO stakeholders prioritize feasible interventions in low-resource settings while negotiating with the central government and donors for more costly, infrastructure-focused investments. Public servants promote “open-source” disaster management plans, creating a pool of shared priorities and resources, including systems, staff, and data. They build networks and long-term relationships with NGOs and multi-sectoral actors to enhance program implementation feasibility through the establishment of permanent and ad-hoc committees and training.
Conclusions: Disaster management plans in Malawi are subject to neoliberal policies advocating for selective services based on feasibility and cost-effectiveness with limited resources, echoing similar approaches for other public services in the country. However, public servants' focus on long-term relationships creates spaces of imaginaries of what could be feasible in disaster preparedness and management. All the while, challenging the notion of the feasible by negotiating for infrastructure-focused investments.