What works in Malawi

Malawi has deployed three major evidence-backed programmes targeting digital inclusion, financial empowerment, and education. The Malawi Digital Foundations Project (DIGMAP) brought nearly 7 million Malawians online for the first time and trained over 19,000 youth at 10 Tech Hubs, while cutting wholesale internet prices by 98%. The CARE Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) increased rural women's savings by 34% and monthly business profits by 24% (RCT evidence), at a cost of USD 7.01 per household. BEFIT, an AI-adaptive literacy and numeracy programme, achieved effect sizes of 0.34–0.37 in literacy across nine RCTs and is rolling out to all 6,000 public primary schools to serve 3.8 million children by 2029. The evidence base for these programmes varies—DIGMAP and VSLA draw on observational and RCT designs respectively, while BEFIT's backing includes multiple RCTs—but collectively they demonstrate Malawi's investment in connectivity, financial inclusion, and foundational learning outcomes.