Ex-ante assessment of integrated aquaculture-agriculture adoption and impact in Southern Malawi

There are increasing requirements for impact assessment by development partners in order to increase the accountability and effectiveness of research and development projects. Impact assessment research has been dominated by conventional economic methods. This context challenges agricultural research organizations to develop and apply alternative impact assessment methods incorporating economic, social, and environmental impact components. In this study, we use the Tradeoff Analysis for Multi-Dimensional Impact Assessment (TOA-MD) model to evaluate the impact of integrated aquaculture-agriculture (IAA) adoption in Malawi. The study demonstrated that with a minimal data set, the TOA-MD model can be applied to predict and assess the adoption rates of new technologies and practices as well as their economic and non-economic impacts

Decision support for water management for integrating aquaculture in small-scale irrigation systems: a case for the Chingale catchment in Malawi. Project Brief

A three-year project was funded by the BMZ/GIZ to examine the benefits of integrating aquaculture and small scale irrigation by identifying improved water allocation and management strategies under current and future climate change scenarios. An integrated modeling approach was adopted to analyze the complex issues involved in the decision processes. A water budgeting approach was used in estimating and balancing the water resources available to farming communities (the supply aspect) and the water demand for agricultural use, including crops and fish farming, within a catchment. Adjustments in water allocation and management across and within sub-catchments may then be explored at and beyond the farm level to achieve improved productivity from the integrated farming system while maintaining sustainability and equity in development