A sensitivity to sensitisation: a case study of participatory approaches within government-mandated climate resettlement in Malawi

Abstract

Research suggests that extreme weather will increase and impact more and more people. This has led a growing number of governments to consider resettling vulnerable populations. Resettlement is a novel strategy to manage disasters. Due to the infancy of resettlement as a strategy to adapt to environmental change there is debate about the best approach. However, one area of agreement is that resettlement should be voluntary and participatory. Despite an extensive literature on participation and its future, there are still difficulties preventing participation occurring in practice. In-depth interviews about the resettlement decision were held with three flooding-impacted communities and stakeholders in government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Malawi. The research shows how government and NGOs use sensitisation as a technique to determine the knowledge of those in flooding-vulnerable communities. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the way in which sensitisation can contribute to a participatory approach. Sensitisation is often spoken of as synonymous with education. This research finds that government and NGOs use sensitisation mainly as part of a one-way process of disseminating their perspective to communities, with little or no opportunity for community members to make their voices heard and for resettlement to be participatory.

Keywords:

• Resettlement
• participation
• flooding
• sensitisation
• Malawi

Acknowledgements

The author thanks all of the participants of this research.

Conflict of interest statement

The author has no conflicts of interest to report.

Ethics

Ethical approval was obtained from the University of St Andrews, reference number GG13079, and from the Government of Malawi, reference number REF.NO.NCST/RTT/2/6.

Additional information

Funding

This paper was funded by the 1 + 3 ESRC award from the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS) (Award number: ES/J500136/1).

Notes on contributors

Hebe Nicholson

Hebe Nicholson is a social scientist in people–environment studies at the Social, Economic and Geographical Sciences (SEGS) Department at the James Hutton Institute. Her research interests lie in the social impact of climate change, environmental migration, community participation and environmental governance. She obtained her PhD at the School of Geography and Sustainable Development at the University of St Andrews. Her PhD research explored the use of government resettlement as a form of participatory adaptation to climate change in the Lower Shire Region of Malawi.