Food security and resource transformation in Malawi’s highland and mid-altitude vegetable farming communities

This study examines the food and farm income provisioning systems of vegetable-producing societies in the highland and mid-altitude regions of central and northern Malawi. Drawing on focus group discussion with smallholder farmers across twelve sites in six districts, the study examines how provisioning systems, including households, markets, technologies, institutions, and material stocks, interact with the use of resource and processes to enhance food security. The findings indicate that vegetable production plays an important role in both food provisioning via upland rainfed crops, and income generation via irrigated wetland vegetables, yet access to key natural resources, especially wetlands and irrigation infrastructure, is highly uneven. Wealthier households, with better access to modern technologies and farm inputs, can capitalize on vegetable markets, while poorer households have structural and financial limitation that constrain their opportunity for participation and their resilience. Ecological variation across highland and mid-altitude zones significantly influences provisioning patterns. Highland areas offer favourable growing conditions but are constrained by land scarcity, erosion, and infrastructure deficits, further compounding socioeconomic inequalities. Despite these challenges, farmers demonstrate strong collective agency through local innovations, cooperative labour, and informal finance systems, although exploitative market vendor dynamics and reliance on high-cost credit sources persist. The study concludes that integrated farming systems, supported by context-sensitive, inclusive development interventions, are essential for improving food security and resource sustainability. Special attention must be given to highland communities whose ecological and economic vulnerabilities require targeted policy and infrastructural support.