Relief food distribution is expected to ease hunger among the targeted 38 787 households in Salima District. The exercise will see each household receive 50 kilogramms of maize per month for four months starting December 2025. Implemented by the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma), the exercise seeks to cushion food-insecure communities during the lean season.
On Friday, Salima District Disaster Risk Management Office distributed maize in Traditional Authority Khombeza. A beneficiary Lezita Phiri said her family had nothing to eat and relied on piecework to get food. “The support has come when most households have little or no food.
Many families were rendered food-insecure due to poor harvests from the previous farming season,” she said, Another beneficiary John Simphasi said maize is a luxury now because it is only expected to be ready in the fields by March. “We have been consistently receiving maize for the past months which has improved our food stability,” he said. Salima district disaster risk management officer Gloria Chinangwa said they carried out the exercise to prevent worsening food insecurity.
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“Launching the year with maize distribution is crucial because food insecurity remains a major challenge in the district. This initiative ensures that vulnerable households have access to staple food,” she said. Chinangwa also emphasised the importance of local leaders and community members in identifying vulnerable households to receive relief food.
President Peter Mutharika declared a State of National Disaster for the country’s 28 districts and four city councils following acute food shortage for the 2025/26 consumption year. Since then, Dodma has been distributing relief food to affected households. The 2025/26 Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee Report says at least four million people are facing hunger.
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