In Malawi, women experience lower human endowments, economic opportunity, voice and agency than men.  Gender inequality  increases women’s  lack of agency at home, and thus increases their vulnerability to gender-based violence.  An estimated  24.3% of all women aged 15-49 years have experienced physical violence in the last 12 months, while 16.3% of women  believe that a husband is justified in beating his wife under certain circumstances

To address this, it is essential to focus on policies that prioritize addressing gender gaps in policy combinations and address human capital, economic opportunities, ownership and control of assets and that promote women’s voice and agency. The Multiannual Indicative Programme-1 2021-2030 emphasizes the need for integrated approaches to promote gender equality and to create greater opportunities, especially for women and youth. 

Furthermore, a robust social protection programme (targeting women) that leverages the potential of digital technology can empower women by enabling them to succeed in the future of work, to access essential digital services, including those for education and health care, and to increase their civic and political engagement.  

With a  national unemployment rate in Malawi of approximately 18.5% in 2018  (higher among females than males, at 20.3% and 16.6%, respectively), and youth (aged 15-24 years) not in education, employment, or training at 29.6%  in 2020, it is crucial to give special attention to women, youth and people with disabilities when addressing the issue of decent work for all.​​

As the country’s economic activity mostly takes place in the agricultural sector, it continues to be highly vulnerable to economic and climate shocks due to weak or no protection systems.

By focusing on Target 8.5, the Government of Malawi can advance inclusive and sustainable economic growth and development and improved livelihoods for its citizens and leverage the synergies with investments that reduce energy intensity and to increase its efficiency to mitigate the negative impact on the share of renewable energy (Target 7.2) and energy  efficiency (Target 7.3).​

SDG Target 9.2 aims to foster inclusive and sustainable industrialization in Malawi while simultaneously enhancing its economic growth. Despite recent improvements, manufacturing value added as a proportion of GDP and per capita remains relatively low in Malawi (around 11.5 % in 2020).  

However, the pursuit of industrialization also entails tradeoffs. It requires careful consideration of environmental sustainability, as industrial activities can have adverse ecological impacts—affecting ecosystems (SDGs 15 and 2), potable water (SDG 6), life below water (SDG 14) and life on land (SDG 15).  Rapid industrialization could put pressure on energy access (Target 7.1) at the expense of energy sustainability (Targets 7.2 and 7.3). Ensuring inclusivity in this process is crucial to prevent potential social, gender and territorial inequalities (Targets 10, 5).

By investing in SDG 9.2 (inclusive and sustainable industrialization), Malawi can improve on its current employment challenges and focus on key priorities around eradication of poverty, reducing inequality, improving the business environment and local entrepreneurship. This, complemented with rural economic transformation that focuses on fostering commercially successful smallholders and creating on- and off-farm employment opportunities for smallholders, will both generate jobs in downstream agro-processing and the services sectors and increase demand for locally produced services.

Persons affected by direct economic loss due to cyclones, floods, landslides, droughts, multiple shocks (exogenous and endogenous), including the COVID-19 pandemic, have  increased in the past decade in Malawi.

In a context in which climate change-related extreme weather events are expected to increase, it is critical to step up prevention, mitigation and adaptation interventions that strengthen the resilience of human settlements and cities across the country. Such interventions will be critical to enable Malawi to attain its SDGs and its ambitions to attain  sustainable environmental and natural resources management, disaster risk reduction, and to minimize the adverse impacts of climate change by 2030, as recognized in the MIP 1 2021 – 2030. 

Investing in SDG 11 (Sustainable and resilient cities and human settlements ) can help Malawi address current challenge of resilience of the poor and vulnerable to focus on key priority areas, such as water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, environmental sustainability and to strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters.  

In Malawi approximately 44.8% of the population are satisfied with the public services they receive. By focusing on SDG 16 (Peace, justice, and strong institutions), and specifically Target 16.6, measures can be implemented to cut across all goals and pillars outlined in the MIP-1 2021 – 2030, where public services are provided. 

This offers Malawi the opportunity to set a higher ambition, for example, towards the percentage of the population satisfied with public services received. This increase will have a positive multiplier effect on the progress made for other SDGs. 

However, it is crucial to ensure that this goal is accompanied by safeguards to prevent the deepening of poverty inequalities.