ASSESSING EFFECTIVENESS OF EARLY WARNINGS AND EARLY WARNING SYSTEMS IN FLOOD RESPONSE IN NSANJE, SOUTHERN MALAWI.

Floods have caused a lot of destruction to lives and properties in Nsanje, T/A Ndamela, mostly to communities that are close to rivers, this area most times experience floods due to the swelling of rivers for example Nyachilande river, therefore the people living in this area are most vulnerable to floods. Despite the area having a warning system, early warning messages to warning people about the impending floods, a large population of people is being affected by these floods, their properties get destroyed by these floods. This paper has exploited and assessed the effectiveness of early warnings and EWS to flood response in Nsanje, T/A Ndamela.
The main focus of this study revolved around assessing how effective early warnings are to the people in the area by looking and taking into account in most important areas of the early warning system. The study consisted direct involvement of the people in the area in form of key informant interviews and also usage of questionnaire to obtain information about early warnings and EWS to flooding events that have been affecting they livelihoods. The data was analysed using SSPS software to produce trends in form of tables and descriptive analysis was employed, thematic approach was also used to analyse data from key informant interviews. The results of the study indicated that most of the people in this area are affected by floods due to weak early warning system that’s doesn’t produce warnings in the right time in readiness to floods, lack of communication infrastructure (Radio, TV’s) for weather forecasts, lack of good governance that can help to boost community participation and also increase the level of commitment.
It is very important if early warning such areas are strengthened, therefore the study recommended some of the possible solutions to these challenges faced by these people in using early warning for flood response. Some of the suggested solutions are increasing financing in EWS, increased education and training, and also prioritize documentation at a local level as it easier for policy implementation and blending of local knowledge and modern systems.

Floods have caused a lot of destruction to lives and properties in Nsanje, T/A Ndamela, mostly to communities that are close to rivers, this area most times experience floods due to the swelling of rivers for example Nyachilande river, therefore the people living in this area are most vulnerable to floods. The study consisted direct involvement of the people in the area in form of key informant interviews and also usage of questionnaire to obtain information about early warnings and EWS to flooding events that have been affecting they livelihoods. The results of the study indicated that most of the people in this area are affected by floods due to weak early warning system that’s doesn’t produce warnings in the right time in readiness to floods, lack of communication infrastructure (Radio, TV’s) for weather forecasts, lack of good governance that can help to boost community participation and also increase the level of commitment. Some of the suggested solutions are increasing financing in EWS, increased education and training, and also prioritize documentation at a local level as it easier for policy implementation and blending of local knowledge and modern systems.

The study area of this research is Nsanje in T/A Ndamela, which is found in the Lower shire section that covers a large section in the southern region of Malawi with other districts like Chikwawa, Blantyre, Zomba, Thyolo, Mulanje, Balaka, Mwanza. Much concentration of this research was put on the Nsanje district that recorded the most flood events, the high frequency of flooding events was an ideal factor to be chosen as a study area. Nsanje registered more flood events in Malawi's history which lies along the flat basin of the Shire Valley with a measured altitude of around 780 to 800 meters above sea level. Nsanje covers an area of 1940 km2 (Map Action, 2015), which is about 15% (Government of Malawi, 2017).

Traditional authority: TA Ndamera

District: Nsanje

Coordinates: -17.0733, 35.16655