By Richard Kagunda

Kasungu, September 26, Mana: Chairperson for Kasungu District Council, Mwambilaso Mbedza has urged farmers in the district to aim at agriculture commercialization by adopting modern technologies in farming.

The Chairperson said this on Wednesday during an agricultural fair, which was held at Santhe Admarc ground in the area of Senior Chief Santhe in Kasungu district, where farmers showcased their products and interacted with various stakeholders.

"There must be a mindset change in the approaches to our farming. We must take farming as a business because this is the direction the country is taking.

"We must also remember that climate change is here with us and we must adopt approaches that make us resilient even when we face unfriendly climatic patterns," Mbedza said.

She appealed to Agro dealers and other off-takers to do justice to farmers by buying their produce at good prices so that farmers can make reasonable profits in the face of rising prices of farm inputs.

District Agriculture Extension Coordinating Committee (DAEC), organized the fair, which is to last three days, a platform for farmers to sell their products and gain knowledge on how they can improve their farming.

Chairperson for DAEC, Peter Minjale said the fair was organized to join the government’s efforts, especially in the area of promoting agriculture commercialization.

"We join the government in advocating for agriculture commercialization and we believe it is the sure way of transforming smallholder farmers to become commercial farmers," Minjale said.

He urged Agro traders to develop a good relationship with farmers and share knowledge on how they can best improve their enterprises so that agriculture commercialization is achieved in the district.

On her part, Senior Chief Santhe said agriculture commercialization is one among other pillars that can enable Malawi as a nation to fulfill Vision 2063.

She also urged farmers to consult financial institutions that provide agricultural loans for funding opportunities to help grow their businesses.

This year's agriculture fair is being held under the theme 'Driving towards export of agriculture through commercialization and innovation’.