EfD Senior Associate, Stella Ngolka is exploring climate change impacts on livelihoods in Malawi’s tea sector.

12th May 2025

EfD Senior Associate, Stella Ngolka is exploring climate change impacts on livelihoods in Malawi’s tea sector. She is conducting a PhD study based in the Walker Institute at the University of Reading.

Malawi’s tea sector plays a pivotal role in the country’s economy and rural livelihoods. However, the sector faces severe challenges due to the impacts of climate change, including rising temperatures, erratic rainfall patterns, and extreme weather events such as cyclones and floods. These climatic stresses threaten not only tea yields and quality but also the income and food security of farming communities. The research utilizes a combination of the Household Economy Approach (HEA), Individual Household Method (IHM), and quantitative climate storylines to explore:

• Climate-Related Vulnerability: Investigating the relationship between climate change, tea production, and household income in Mulanje and Thyolo
• Adaptation Strategies: Evaluating the strategies employed by smallholder tea farmers to address climate-related vulnerabilities.
• Policy Integration: Identifying soft barriers such as communication gaps, funding gaps, governance challenges, and weak policy linkages to inform. evidence-based climate adaptation policies.

For more information see: https://walker.reading.ac.uk/project/exploring-climate-change-impacts-on-livelihoods-in-malawis-tea-sector-stella-ngoleka/