Mbala Elderly Resilient Farming and Food Security Project (MERFFSP) – Five-Year
Plan
Executive Summary
The Mbala Elderly Resilient Farming and Food Security Project (MERFFSP) is a five-year
initiative aimed at reducing poverty and chronic food insecurity among elderly-headed
households in Mbala District, Northern Province of Zambia. Older persons in the district
depend largely on subsistence farming but face severe constraints including low productivity,
limited access to improved inputs, inadequate irrigation, and poor market opportunities.
These vulnerabilities are compounded by climatic shocks and the high cost of food in rural
areas, which expose elderly households to persistent hunger and deprivation (Central
Statistical Office, 2022).
The project’s goal is to alleviate poverty and improve food security for elderly households
through climate-smart agriculture, cooperative farming, and sustainable food reserves. Its
purpose is to ensure that by Year Five, at least 2,500 elderly-headed households achieve
reliable food availability, improved dietary diversity, and stable incomes from agricultural
production and surplus marketing.
Key interventions include provision of climate-smart inputs and irrigation kits, establishment
of elderly farming cooperatives and community grain reserves, training in value addition, and
structured market linkages. The project will also integrate older farmers into Zambia’s Social
Cash Transfer (SCT) and National Health Insurance Management Authority (NHIMA)
frameworks to strengthen social protection coverage. The total estimated budget is ZMW
113.55 million (USD 4.54 million) over five years.
Through these integrated measures, MERFFSP will reduce hunger by 30 percent among
targeted households, increase average household incomes by at least 30 percent, and create
sustainable community-based food systems. The project aligns with the Eighth National
Development Plan (8NDP), the National Ageing Policy, and global commitments such as the
UN Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021–2030) (WHO, 2021; HelpAge International, 2019).
Introduction
Old individuals in Zambia, particularly rural Zambia such as Mbala, are subjected to long-
term poverty and starvation because they are compelled to work in farming until a very
advanced age but with diminishing returns due to insufficient labour, new technologies, and
irrigation systems. The 2022 Living Conditions Monitoring Survey showed that 78.8 percent
of rural Zambians lived in poverty, and old people were among the most hit (CSO, 2022),
whereas climate change has amplified the variability of rainfall, making rain-fed agriculture
unreliable and further constraining older farmers into poverty (FAO, 2020).
Though government initiatives like the Social Cash Transfer program offer some respite, the
respite is not sufficient to offer enduring food and nutrition security (Mumba & Kalusopa,
2021). This situation manifestly leads to the necessity of placing interventions focused on
both agricultural support, cooperative institutions, and market linkages to secure the
livelihood protection of the elderly, which is what the MERFFSP strives to achieve by
providing poverty reduction through food security interventions increasing both immediate
consumption as well as long-term resilience.
Background of the Problem
The problem of food insecurity and poverty among the aged in Zambia, and particularly in
Mbala District, remains deep-seated and pervasive. Most of the aged depend on subsistence
agriculture, but their productivity is stunted because of poor access to improved seedlings,
irrigation devices, and steady market connections. This exposes them to hunger, malnutrition,
and escalated poverty. The Living Conditions Monitoring Survey (LCMS) conducted in 2022
showed that 78.8 percent of rural Zambians live below the poverty line, with extreme poverty
accounting for 48 percent of the population (CSO, 2022). Elderly-headed households are
disproportionately affected as they rely on small pieces of land and declining labour power
due to age-related frailty.
Population dynamics make it worse. The United Nations Department of Economic and Social
Affairs has projected the proportion of the population aged 60 years and older in Zambia to
grow from 4.7 percent in 2020 to 6.2 percent in 2030 (UN DESA, 2020). Community surveys
within Mbala estimate that approximately 65 percent of households headed by older persons
experience seasonal food scarcity for two to four months annually (HelpAge International,
2019). These shortages fall during the "hungry season" of December to March when food
supplies are depleted, prices increase, and older households cannot afford sufficient supplies.
Climate change has added to the challenge by increasing rainfall extremes, extending the
onset of rainy seasons, and creating episodic floods. These climatic shocks enhance the
unreliability of rain-fed agriculture and make elderly farmers highly vulnerable to shocks
because they lack irrigation and sophisticated technologies (FAO, 2020). Evidence shows that
the elderly farmers in Zambia are excluded from subsidies and extension services, which
results in 40 to 50 percent lower yields compared to young farmers (Chisanga & Sitko, 2019).
Exclusion supports low productivity and contributes to further entrenching food insecurity
among the elderly households.
Nutrition statistics also attest to the severity of the crisis. Rural Zambia's elderly population is
highly vulnerable to undernutrition and micronutrient malnutrition. World Health
Organization (2021) further noted that older persons in sub-Saharan Africa are increasing
vulnerabilities due to poor diets, poverty, and limited access to social protection programs. In
Zambia, dietary patterns of older-headed households continue to reveal low diet diversity,
which is maize-based with little protein or vegetables. In Mbala, history also indicates more
than 30 percent of screened older persons under 2021 outreach programs were underweight
or suffered from nutrition-related illnesses.
Though the Social Cash Transfer (SCT) program has reached 1.29 million families
countrywide, it is incomplete in rural places and the level of benefit, ZMW 400 every two
months, falls far below the estimated ZMW 2,100 monthly cost of a minimum healthy food
basket (Zambia Statistics Agency, 2023). This leaves the older homes very exposed and in
dire need of overarching interventions that integrate agricultural support, cooperatives, and
food reserves to restore dignity, independence, and resilience among the elderly in Mbala.
Goal and Purpose
The goal of MERFFSP is to reduce poverty and enhance food security among elderly-headed
households in Mbala District through sustainable and climate-smart agricultural practices.
The project’s purpose is to guarantee that by the end of five years, 2,500 households headed
by older persons will have achieved improved food security, diversified diets, and increased
household incomes. This will be achieved through agricultural support, collective food
storage systems, and structured market integration (Chisanga & Sitko, 2019).
Specific Objectives
1. To provide elderly-headed households with climate-smart agricultural inputs and
irrigation technologies to improve productivity and resilience.
2. To establish and operationalise elderly farming cooperatives and community grain
reserves to ensure year-round food availability.
3. To diversify income streams through simple value addition and integration into
structured markets.
4. To strengthen linkages with SCT and NHIMA to cushion elderly households against
economic and health shocks (HelpAge International, 2019).
Initiation Activities
Initiation activities are the preparatory actions undertaken at the start of a project to establish
governance structures, collect baseline information, and set up the systems necessary for
smooth implementation. According to the Project Management Institute (PMI), the initiation
phase is where a project is formally authorised, objectives are clarified, and key stakeholders
are engaged to ensure readiness for execution (PMI, 2017). In the Mbala Elderly Resilient
Farming and Food Security Project (MERFFSP), the first six months will be devoted to
activities that create a strong foundation for success. These will include the formation of a
District Steering Committee to oversee project governance, a comprehensive baseline survey
to assess the food security situation of elderly households, and the transparent selection of
2,500 beneficiaries.
Other activities will involve developing partnerships with input suppliers and market actors,
recruiting qualified technical staff, and procuring essential agricultural inputs such as
drought-tolerant seeds, irrigation kits, and tools. By the end of this phase, the project will
have in place clear governance mechanisms, verified beneficiary lists, reliable partners,
trained staff, and the necessary inputs to commence production. The detailed activities,
deliverables, responsible actors, and timelines are outlined in the table below.
Table 1. Initiation Phase (Months 1–6)
Activity Description Deliverables Responsible Timeline
Actors
Governance Formation of District Steering Committee Signed TORs and Project Month 1
Structures including MCDSS, MoA, Council, and governance Manager &
traditional leaders charter Council
Baseline Survey Profile elderly households on landholding, Baseline report M&E Team Months 1–2
crops, yields, and food insecurity with & CSO
recommendations partners
Beneficiary Transparent selection of 2,500 elderly-headed Verified CWACs & Months 2–3
Selection households beneficiary lists Traditional
Leaders
Partnerships MoUs with input suppliers, extension Signed MoUs Procurement Months 3–4
services, and buyers Officer
Staff Hire technical staff, including agricultural Induction and HR Unit Months 4–5
Recruitment extension assistants training reports
Input Acquire drought-tolerant seeds, irrigation Delivery of inputs Procurement Months 5–6
Procurement kits, and tools Officer
Project Plan
The project will be implemented through three interlinked components:
1. Component A: Agricultural Input and Extension Support: Older farmers will be
supported with drought-tolerant maize, beans, cassava, and groundnut seeds, as well
as irrigation kits and hand tools. Extension services will promote conservation
farming and intercropping, which are cost-effective for labour-constrained elderly
households (FAO, 2020).
2. Component B: Cooperatives and Community Grain Reserves: Beneficiaries will
form cooperatives that operate storage facilities and grain reserves. Surplus harvests
will be pooled, ensuring that food is available during the lean season. Grain reserves
will be managed with cooperative governance structures for accountability.
3. Component C: Value Addition and Market Linkages: Simple processing
technologies such as groundnut butter making, vegetable drying, and poultry rearing
will increase income. The project will establish offtake contracts with schools,
hospitals, and local traders, creating sustainable markets for elderly farmers (Chisanga
& Sitko, 2019).
Execution Processes and Activities
Execution will follow a seasonal calendar. Inputs will be distributed before planting, and
demonstration plots established. Cooperatives will manage bulk purchases of inputs and
coordinate grain storage. Extension officers will deliver continuous training on soil fertility
and pest control. Grain reserves will be stocked after harvests and released during lean
periods. Value addition training and market linkages will be developed progressively. By
Year Five, cooperatives should operate independently, sustaining reserves and accessing
structured markets.
Monitoring, Control and Evaluation Framework
Monitoring will use a results-based management approach. Indicators will track changes in
crop yields, food security, household incomes, and grain reserve stocks. Data will be
collected quarterly and verified through site visits. Control mechanisms include regular
audits, beneficiary feedback forums, and steering committee reviews. A midterm evaluation
in Year Three will inform adjustments, while an endline evaluation in Year Five will measure
impact.
Budget
This section outlines the estimated financial resources required for the successful
implementation of the Mbala Elderly Resilient Farming and Food Security Project
(MERFFSP) over a five-year period. The budget is structured to cover key components of the
project, including personnel and operational costs, agricultural inputs and irrigation support,
cooperative development and grain reserves, market linkages and value addition, as well as
monitoring and evaluation. A contingency provision of five percent is also included to
cushion the project against unforeseen costs. The total budget for the five-year project is
ZMW 113,550,000 (USD 4,542,000). This investment will ensure that elderly-headed
households in Mbala District receive comprehensive support to improve food security, reduce
poverty, and strengthen resilience through climate-smart agriculture and cooperative systems.
The detailed annual and component-wise allocations are presented in the table below.
Table 2. Five-Year Budget Summary
Budget Line Item Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Total Total
(ZMW) (USD)
Personnel & Operations 5,000,000 5,000,000 5,500,000 5,500,000 5,500,000 26,500,000 1,060,000
Agricultural Inputs & 6,000,000 7,000,000 7,500,000 8,000,000 8,000,000 36,500,000 1,460,000
Irrigation
Cooperative Support & 3,000,000 3,500,000 4,000,000 4,000,000 4,500,000 19,000,000 760,000
Grain Reserves
Market Linkages & Value 2,500,000 3,000,000 3,500,000 3,500,000 3,500,000 16,000,000 640,000
Addition
Monitoring & Evaluation 1,500,000 2,000,000 2,000,000 2,500,000 2,500,000 10,500,000 420,000
Contingency (5%) 900,000 950,000 1,000,000 1,100,000 1,100,000 5,050,000 202,000
Total 18,900,000 21,450,000 23,500,000 24,600,000 25,100,000 113,550,000 4,542,000
Logframe
A logical framework (logframe) is a project management and planning instrument that
captures the hierarchy of objectives, indicators, means of verification, and assumptions by
which progress and impact will be measured. It provides a transparent way of setting out the
relationship between project activities and inputs and outputs, outcomes, and goal, and
ensuring intervention is results-based and measurable (European Commission, 2004). For
Mbala Elderly Resilient Farming and Food Security Project (MERFFSP), the logframe
clearly reveals how market linkages, grain reserves, agricultural inputs, and cooperatives will
contribute to improved food security and poverty reduction for elderly-headed households in
Mbala District. The details are outlined below in the matrix.
Table 3. Logical Framework Matrix
Narrative Summary Indicators Means of Assumptions
Verification
Goal: Reduce poverty and food Hunger prevalence reduced by Household Stable economic
insecurity among elderly- 30% in 5 years surveys; and political
headed households LCMS reports environment
Purpose: Improve food Food security scores improve Project M&E Households
security and incomes for 2,500 40%; incomes increase 30% data; adopt
households cooperative recommended
records practices
Outputs: Inputs, reserves, 2,500 households receive inputs; Distribution Timely funding
cooperatives, markets 50 reserves functional; 20 lists; and participation
cooperatives formed cooperative
reports
Activities: Distribute inputs, 250 demo plots; 50 storage units; Field reports; Weather
train farmers, build reserves, 100 trainings held extension logs favourable for
link markets production
Schedule of Activities
Activity sequence outlines the sequence of priority activities to do during the five-year
project life of the Mbala Elderly Resilient Farming and Food Security Project (MERFFSP).
The strategy is in phases such that the project starts with governance and set-up activities and
then scales up agricultural extension, cooperatives, and market systems. Each year's progress
cumulates from set-up and piloting to expansion, consolidation, and ultimately close-out of
the project.
During the first year, the project will concentrate on establishing governance system,
undertaking baseline survey, identifying first beneficiaries, and establishing first cooperatives
and reserves. Beginning the second year, the project will reach more households, establish
cooperatives and reserves, and create value and market linkages. Agro-processing activities
will be introduced in the fourth year to raise incomes and sustainability. The fifth and final
year shall be used for the completion of achievements, performing the final appraisal, and
preparation for closure and handover of the project. The detailed annual plan is presented in
the following table.
Table 4. Annual Schedule
Year Key Activities
Year 1 Governance set-up; baseline survey; select 1,000 households; distribute inputs; launch 10
cooperatives and 5 reserves
Year 2 Expand to 1,500 households; strengthen reserves; add 10 cooperatives; train in value
addition
Year 3 Scale to 2,000 households; conduct midterm evaluation; operationalise market linkages;
expand irrigation
Year 4 Cover 2,300 households; strengthen 40 reserves; launch agro-processing units
Year 5 Reach 2,500 households; consolidate 20 cooperatives; final evaluation and project closure
Stakeholders and Their Roles
The Ministry of Community Development and Social Services (MCDSS) will handle
targeting and SCT integration, while the Ministry of Agriculture will provide extension
services. The Mbala Municipal Council will coordinate logistics and embed activities in ward
plans. Traditional leaders and CWACs will validate beneficiaries and mobilise communities.
Private sector suppliers and buyers will ensure reliable input supply and market access.
Elderly cooperatives will manage collective production and reserves. Development partners
will provide financing and technical oversight (Bryson, 2018).
Risks and Mitigation
Risks include climate shocks affecting yields, market fluctuations reducing incomes, and
exclusion of frail elderly. These will be mitigated through irrigation, crop diversification,
forward contracts with buyers, and home-based gardens for the frail. Delays in input delivery
will be addressed by contracting multiple suppliers.
Project Closure Undertakings
In Year Five, MERFFSP will conduct a final evaluation comparing baseline and endline
results. All grain storage structures, irrigation packages, and cooperative buildings will be
handed over to farmer cooperatives and ward committees. Learnings will be documented and
disseminated at district and provincial levels. Financial and technical reports will be
submitted to partners, and project assets integrated into district agricultural systems.
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