Prior to the 2006/07 farming season, the Government of Malawi planned to distribute three coupons to over 1 million smallholder farmers with which they would buy 1 50kg bag of basal fertiliser (23:21:0 – NPK) and one bag of top dressing fertiliser (Urea) and to use the third coupon to receive a free packet of maize seed. A further 200,000 tobacco farmers were to receive additional coupons to enable them buy subsidized fertiliser for use in their tobacco farming. This study was conducted so as to assess how the programme was being viewed by the intended beneficiaries and how farmers experienced the programme being implemented in their areas. A survey utilizing both qualitative (Focus group discussions and key informant interviews) and quantitative methods (household survey) was conducted in four randomly sampled districts namely Chiradzulu and Machinga in the south, Kasungu in the centre and Mzimba in the north. Participants to the FGDs were selected conveniently with the help of local chiefs and members of village development committees whereas households for the household interviews were sampled using random procedures. A detailed description of the methodology is presented in Annex 1 at the end of this report. One hundred and ninety-two (192) households were visited in the four districts and a total of 17 FGD and 16 key informant interviews (KII) were conducted which involved 184 participants (both men and women and of various age groups).

The findings from this study can be summarized into four broad categories: (1) those relating to the concept of the programme (the Impact of the ISP in addressing farmers‟ vulnerability); (2) those relating to implementation issues (targeting and beneficiary selection – inclusion and exclusion errors); (3) those relating to implementation structures and coordination; and, (4) those relating to expected and unexpected effects of the programme. Generally, the findings of this survey present a mixture of experiences with some participants commending the programme while in other instances, participants wholly rejecting the programme mainly arising from the manner in which the programme was handled in the villages. On the concept and objectives of the programme, it is generally agreed that the idea of the Input Subsidy Programme (ISP) is good and very helpful in that most farmers who would not afford to buy fertiliser are able to do so through the programme thereby boosting maize harvests for those farmers that receive and use the coupons. As the programme has been in existence for two consecutive seasons, most households now see themselves as being more food secure than in the last decade.

Concerning implementation issues (inclusion and exclusion criteria), there have been frustrations, confusion and discontent in some of the villages arising from the manner the programme was handled. The findings suggest that some areas have had good experiences especially where their village chiefs have been transparent and where politicians are powerful as these have been helpful in mobilizing adequate or additional coupons which made it possible for almost all households to receive the coupons. The cases of example in this survey are two villages one which belongs to a Member of Parliament (MP) who was also a Cabinet Minister at the time of the programme and another belonging to an opposition MP but very influential at national level. What is common though is that structures that were used to identify beneficiaries and to do the actual distribution of the coupons were different and were open to confusion, nepotism, bribery, abuse and fraud. Nine percent (9%) of the 192 households reported to have bought some coupons in the 2006/07 season, 17% of the households in Kasungu and 11% of the households in Chiradzulu.