Kasungu farmers to benefit from K3 billion project

Kasungu, August 29, Mana: At least 2000 farmers from Kasungu and Mzimba districts are earmarked to benefit from a K3 billion Empowering Women and Youth in Agriculture in Malawi project to be implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture.

The project which is being supported by the Flanders Government with technical support from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is designed to increase proportion of youths and women who contribute to the production and commercialisation of important and developing high value crops.

Briefing stakeholders in Kasungu on Monday, Coordinator for National Agriculture Investment Plan (NAIP) in the Ministry of Agriculture, Eric Haraman said the project will promote advanced technologies, capital finance access, and high quality extension and advisory services to improve agricultural productivity and enhance key-value chains.

“The project will facilitate creation of an enabling environment for market access and linkage by processing and value addition, aggregating private sector engagement and forming primary secondary cooperatives.

“Additionally, it will increase agricultural productivity through advanced technologies and advisory services and facilitate access and linkages through value addition and cooperatives,” Haraman said.

He said the initiative reflects the goals of the Malawi 2063, National Agriculture Policy and National Export Strategy II policies which work to create an agriculture sector that is both highly productive and commercialised.

“Broadly, the project seeks to enhance agricultural productivity, improve access to markets and provide technical support to the Ministry of Agriculture. Through these components, we hope to have improved livelihoods, increased income, and sustainable markets.

“We would also want to see enhanced capacity and skills of farmers to deliver and benefit from improved agricultural production and productivity, value addition, trade and access to finance by women and youths,” he said.

Chief Agriculture Officer for Kasungu, Chikumbutso Liwonde, said the project is a game changer for women and youths who he said are largely sidelined in agricultural activities.

He said: “It’s a welcome development more because it is addressing critical issues affecting women and youths and agriculture in general. We have had instances whereby farmers are able to produce but after that, there are no steady markets.

“So this project will help address that gap where the beneficiaries in cooperatives and networks will be linked to off takers to sell their produce in steady markets.”

The project which will run for 28 months will also encourage practices to build climate resilience and restore critical ecosystems supporting agricultural production through agroforestry and forestry regeneration.

Women and youths are reported to be facing barriers in resource access, finance, mechanization and markets in the country’s mainstay sector that employs 76 percent of the population and contributes 80 percent of exports and 23 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

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