Cereal-Legume Value Chain Analysis: A Case of Smallholder Production in Selected Areas of Malawi

Giacomo Branca, Luca Cacchiarelli, Valentina D’Amico, Laifolo Dakishoni, Esther Lupafya, Mufunanji Magalasi, Chiara Perelli and Alessandro Sorrentino
Additional contact information
Giacomo Branca: Department of Economics, Engineering, Society and Business Organization, University of Tuscia, Via del Paradiso, 47, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
Luca Cacchiarelli: Department of Economics, Engineering, Society and Business Organization, University of Tuscia, Via del Paradiso, 47, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
Valentina D’Amico: CREA—Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’analisi dell’economia Agraria, 00198 Roma, Italy
Laifolo Dakishoni: Soils, Food and Healthy Communities Organization (SFHC), Ekwendeni P.O. Box 36, Malawi
Esther Lupafya: Soils, Food and Healthy Communities Organization (SFHC), Ekwendeni P.O. Box 36, Malawi
Mufunanji Magalasi: Faculty of Science, Chancellor College, University of Malawi, Zomba P.O. Box 280, Malawi
Chiara Perelli: Department of Economics, Engineering, Society and Business Organization, University of Tuscia, Via del Paradiso, 47, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
Alessandro Sorrentino: Department of Economics, Engineering, Society and Business Organization, University of Tuscia, Via del Paradiso, 47, 01100 Viterbo, Italy

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 12, 1-20

Abstract: This article analyses the cereal-legume value chain in Malawi through a comprehensive VC Map, a SWOT exercise and a policy analysis. VC participation entails a number of challenges for smallholders. Limited access to land, technology and inputs, inadequate knowledge of market functioning, insufficient access to credit and extension services, combined with more general problems of poor infrastructures, often prevent smallholder farmers from accessing profitable market opportunities. The effectiveness of national policies (e.g., public extension service support, inputs subsidy system) oriented to increase smallholders’ market access is often constrained by inadequate financial capacity, an inefficient public extension services system and limited involvement of privates in the extension services scheme. VC interventions should distinguish between VC-ready farmers, namely those provided with the minimum conditions of external and internal factors, and non-value-chain-ready farmers. Market-based interventions (e.g., enhancing VC coordination) are needed for enhancing market access of value-chain-ready farmers. Conversely, while non-market-based interventions (e.g., investments in basic infrastructure, increasing extension services, credit and inputs access) prove necessary to build the minimum asset thresholds for non-value-chain-ready farmers’ participation in the market. A smallholder-friendly VC development relies on the role played by VC actors and the need to harmonise and improve existing policies to remove inadequacies, conflicts and overlaps in the various institutions charged with implementation.

Keywords: cereal-legume value chain; value chain analysis; SWOT analysis; policy analysis; value chain readiness; Malawi (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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