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REOSA policy brief 03

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Since the first case of HIV was diagnosed in Malawi in 1985, many parents in their most economically productive years have succumbed to AIDS-related illnesses, often leaving behind young children. According to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Community Development, it is estimated that more than two million children in Malawi could be classified as vulnerable as they face diverse and complex challenges to their survival which may prevent them from realizing their potential in life. In the absence of care, support and livelihoods, orphaned or vulnerable children (OVC) in the country – like those in many other countries – have resorted to piecework, sometimes migrating in search of seasonal work and transactional sex to meet their immediate needs.

This policy brief is the result of three case studies undertaken by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the Regional Inter Agency Task Team for Children and AIDS (RIATT) on livelihoodbased social protection for orphaned and highly vulnerable children in Malawi.