Evaluation of ‘Stories of Change’ Goat and Irrigation Projects in Malawi

Overview

Part of the 2009 ‘Stories of Change’ initiative to document and promote Oxfam’s programme results more effectively, this evaluation focuses on Oxfam’s livelihood rehabilitation programme in Malawi. The programme includes a goat distribution scheme (operational between 2005-2006 in the Thyolo district), and two irrigation schemes (constructed between 2005- 2007 in the Thyolo and Mulanje districts). Both of these interventions were designed and implemented with the intention of re-building more resilient livelihoods for local community members, following an acute food crisis in 2005. In February 2009, Oxfam carried out a mid-term evaluation of both interventions’ progress to date, with the aims of learning about results, assessing sustainability, and exploring the potential for future scale-up. The evaluators found promising results which suggest that both projects are, in many respects, making good progress toward stated aims.