An Assessment of the Environmental Health Workforce Landscape in Malawi: Practice Areas and Development Needs

Background and Objective: Environmental Health (EH) professionals in Malawi play a critical role in protecting public health through disease control and prevention, environmental monitoring, and health promotion. Despite their importance, comprehensive data on the EH workforce including demographics, professional characteristics, practice areas, competencies, and professional development needs has been limited, constraining evidence-based policy formulation and workforce planning. To address this gap, the Malawi Environmental Health Association (MEHA) aimed to systematically assess the demographic profile, professional characteristics, areas of practice, competencies, and development needs of environmental health professionals in Malawi Methods: A mixed-methods study was conducted, utilizing a cross-sectional web-based survey of 155 environmental health professionals and semi-structured key informant interviews with senior officials from the Ministry of Health, including the Deputy Director for Environmental Health and the Deputy Director for Health Promotion. The survey, distributed via professional networks, collected quantitative data on demographics, employment, education, practice areas, and training needs. The key informant interviews provided qualitative insights into systemic challenges, policy gaps, and strategic priorities. Results: The EH workforce is predominantly young (71.6% aged 20-35) and male (75.5%). Most respondents hold a bachelor’s degree (43.2%) and are employed full-time (67.1%) in government institutions (63.9%). Key practice areas include water quality surveillance (85%), food safety (78%), and waste management (72%). Significant challenges identified through the survey and reinforced by key informant interviews include inadequate resources (>60%), weak policy implementation (30-35%), low professional recognition (25-30%), and a critical shortage of specialized personnel at district and community levels. Key informants emphasized the urgent need for a formal regulatory body to standardize practice and a clear career development pathway for EH professionals. Conclusions: This study provides the first comprehensive assessment of Malawi’s environmental health workforce, revealing a capable but under-supported profession facing systemic challenges. The findings underscore the need for strategic workforce development, including targeted training, improved resource allocation, and the establishment of a professional regulatory council. These actions are critical for strengthening Malawi’s environmental health system and enhancing its capacity to protect public health.