By Elia Chibwe

Lilongwe, July 11, Mana: Andrew Msope, 35, from Chimbalanga village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Kadewere in Chiradzulu district, thought of investing capital he earned from his salary into livestock farming such as raising rabbits, ducks and pigs after facing a lot of challenges for several years.

Married with two children, Msope struggled to meet the demands of his family’s basic needs, despite being employed as an Accountant at Agricultural Research and Extension Trust (ARET),

He realized that salary was too little for him to buy what his family needed, and to pay school fees for his children.

“Starting pig farming was a means of increasing income. So when I recognized that salary alone was not enough to pay school fees and to meet other needs, pig farming became a side hustle to increase my income,” he explained.

As Msope invested more capital in piggery, he observed that the venture was a game changer and profitable as one pig could produce more than 10 piglets.

Since he started pig farming business in 2019, Msope has got a lot to show for his lucrative business: he managed to buy 3 cars, a motorbike, and he built shops in various places within Lilongwe city.

He also built a house; and opened a big farm which is known as Msope Farm Stead.

From the pig farming, Msope has also employed 10 permanent workers and hires other causal workers to work in his fields where he grows maize, cabbage, and soya bean within Lilongwe district.

The accountant-cum-farmer disclosed that the farming has also seen him build a good relationship with buyers, and identify good markets.

“We sell piglets to upcoming farmers and organizations and also do value addition. We sell pork to hotels, Chinese and Nigerian restaurants” Msope said.

Despite the strides taken in the piggery, Msope targets to raise 1000 pigs at different stages and increase capacity to meet the demand by customers.

Jimmy Simfukwe, an employee of Msope Farmstead who is the Marketing Officer, lauds the job opportunity, which has seen him improve the livelihood of his family.

Simfukwe recalls to have struggled to get employment since he completed his studies at Mzuzu University in 2022.

The job opportunity has not only brought solutions to Simfukwe's economic needs, it has also equipped him with exceptional skills.

“I have learnt marketing skills, and how to design good pig kraals for improved yield, " he explains, adding: "I have also learnt veterinary services from veterinary officers who attend to the pigs’ medical needs."

Msope’s venture is in line with governments effort in promoting animal husbandry in the country through various interventions.

Director for Animal Health and Livestock Development Dr. Julius Chiwanga Chulu said in a questionnaire that besides conducting regular farmer trainings, government has livestock multiplication Centre’s as one way for improving livestock husbandry including pigs.

“Government has livestock and multiplication Centre’s where farmers can buy breeding stock including pigs at an affordable price. The livestock and multiplication Centre’s also act as demonstration Centre’s where farmers can learn good animal husbandry practices,” Chulu said.

He also disclosed that government is reviewing legislation to take on board emerging and re-emerging issues.

According to the Director, government has organized numerous investment programs which have, and will continue to support livestock development, including piggery.

“Agriculture Commercialization Project (AGCOM 1) provides matching grants to Producer Organization to venture into various enterprises, including piggery,” he said.

“Sustainable Agriculture Production Project (SAPP 1) through the Village Challenge Fund (VCF), SAPP1 also provided grants to farmers for them to venture into various enterprises including piggery, and we have a number of programs to improve the same,” he said.

Chulu recommended pig farming as being more profitable and urged people to venture into the business, or to seek loans from the National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF) for those who cannot afford on their own.

Agriculture expert, Tamani Nkhono Mvula, hailed government for coming up with good livestock policies but it to put urged it to put much effort in supporting pig farmers.

Mvula said: “What we may need is capital investment that one may put in to start the program and once the program starts, its highly profitable business that is able to sustain itself in the long run.

“There has to be more effort from the policy makers to support pig production including giving them information on the enterprise.

According to National Livestock Development Policy for 2021-2026, by 2026 the country’s contribution of livestock sector to overall agricultural production will increase by 50 percent through effective animal production, health and value chains interventions.

The policy also indicates that the government targets to increase the value of livestock exports by 10 percent, and increase by 60 percent the number of new livestock technologies.

It also discloses that the growing demand for livestock and livestock products on both the domestic and export markets can best be met if strategies that achieve growth in numbers and productivity are implemented.