The most recent analysis of poverty among rural smallholders in Malawi is based on data
 from the 1992/93 National Sample Survey f Agriculture (NSSA), as analyzed in the World
 Bank's Poverty Profile (World Bank 19Q95VThis study focused on those households in the bottom
 40 percent of the income distribution. In broad terms, this corresponds to the chronically food
 insecure in Malawi.'

 Poverty is relatively more prevalent among smallholders than among urban dwellers.
 There is also a strong geographical bias in the distribution of poorer households. The South
 contains over half of the country's population but two-thirds of the poorer households. Assuming
 the same income distribution as 1992/93, there are about 400.00 very poor/smallholder
 households (the bottom 20 percent) and an additional 400 O oor ma holder households for
 a total of 800,000 poor and very poor household& that are foo secure.

 Poorer households have distinct demographic profiles. They are likely to be female-
 headed. The poorer the household, the larger the household size and the higher the dependency
 ratio. In other words, poor households have more people and fewer able-bodied workers to
 support them. Female-headed households have a smaller average household size than do male-
 headed households, but they have a higher dependency ratio.

 There is a close relationship between the area of land cultivated by a household and its
 poverty level. Three quarters of poor households cultivate less than 0.5 of a hectare, and almost
 all cultivate less than one hetare. Cultivating a small area of land, however, cannot be equated
 with being poor. Some households who cultivate less than 0.5 hectares are effectively part-time F [)
 farmers. Their major source of income is off-farm employment.

 Most(pi allholders have few assets, use low levels of purchased inputs, and have low
 access to credit. Coohouseholds grow relatively less hybrid maize and more local maize than
 the average while planting more of their land to maize than better-off farmers. -off farmers
 grow more hieh value craon. Poohouseholds often own little livestock.

 Nearly al ohous ha difficult meeting their food remen from their own
production. On average they produce about 6~ercn f the;r fppd rPni rerment. The poorest l
may produce less tha 40 percent of their reguirementc=.\ The land available to them for cultivation- /N
is insufficient to produce enough local maize for their needs; they cannot afford to purchase the
inputs necessary to put all their land under hybrid maize; and they grow virtually no cash crops.
Such households rely on off-farm employment, and in particular gnyu (part-time agricultural
labor) to provide the rest of their food needs. Many households have to reduce their consumption
levels in the pre-harvest period.




 'This section is abstracted from the various studies referred to in Annex C.