Unintended Consequences from the Implementation of Targeted Agricultural Subsidy Policy in Malawi

Abstract

This paper investigated unintended consequences from the implementation of targeted agricultural subsidy policy in Malawi. The paper makes significant contribution towards rethinking over the policy objective and its implementation activities with the purpose of lessening or eradicating the effects of unintended consequences on the policy and the people. Research for this paper was done in Kasungu district in Malawi as a case study. Primary data were collected from government officials and other stakeholders involved in the implementation of the policy. Semi structured interviews, official reports and literature of empirical evidence generated by other scholars were used to collect data. Unintended consequences from implementation of the policy in Malawi included: economically rich households benefiting more from the programme; corrupt practices; displacement of crops not included in the policy from agricultural production; and deforestation. The paper concluded that these unintended consequences had significant negative effect on both successful implementation of the policy and the future wellbeing of the people. It therefore recommended among others, curbing corruption practiced at every level of policy implementation and considering to include alternative staple food crops in the policy in order to encourage diversification. Limitation with this study was that it was confined within a small geographical location.

Keywords: Unintended consequences, Targeted agricultural subsidy policy, Agricultural inputs