Safer Schools Rapid Diagnostics in Malawi

Safer Schools Rapid Diagnostics in Malawi sought to gain a better understanding of the vulnerability of the country’s existing and proposed school infrastructure to natural hazards and climate change. Malawi is exposed to a variety of natural hazards, notably floods, strong winds and cyclones, earthquakes, landslides, and dry spells. Through a field visit and desktop analysis, this Just-in-Time (JiT) rapid diagnostic was to inform the development of a comprehensive strategic plan to enhance school building safety based on these and other factors contributing to risk.

Activities supported by the World Bank

• Determination of the number of existing schools in Malawi and their structural building types and ascertainment of the government’s plans to add to and/or consolidate these schools 

• Assessment of the institutional and policy environment and regulatory framework within which school infrastructure is planned, designed, constructed, operated, maintained, repaired, and retrofitted

• Identification of the government’s main challenges in ensuring new vulnerabilities are not built into the system as they invest in public school infrastructure in the coming years

• Identification of activities in which other donors and partners have engaged recently or are planning to engage in terms of public school infrastructure building and rehabilitation

Main outputs

• Report on hazard assessment based on desktop study of existing information, field visits, and meetings with key stakeholders

• Recommendations and next-step suggestions based on this analysis regarding opportunities to support the government in advancing school safety (including key activities and prioritizations) and the institutional and policy actions necessary for planning and effectively implementing plans for safer schools, improving the quality and enforcement of building standards, and building institutional capacity among stakeholders for risk reduction