COVID RELIEF SUPPORTS ISOKA FARMERS

 By HAPPY MULOLANI

The Corona Virus pandemic (COVID-19) has not spared most productive sectors globally, the agriculture sector is not an exception. In Zambia, the government has prioritized the agriculture sector as the second most important after mining. Given the status quo, most farmers especially smallholder farmers have been hit with the pandemic thereby negatively impacting on their food production and household food security levels in their respective value chains.

With this realization, the Enhanced Smallholder Agribusiness Promotion Programme (E-SAPP) embarked on COVID-19 Relief measures meant to caution the farmers during the period the pandemic struck.

The premise of the COVID-19 Relief was to provide inputs, and other seedlings to boost the targeted farmers’ households’ food security levels in two selected pilot districts. The criteria for would be beneficiaries is based on the most food insecure districts affected by the pandemic and the ones with high levels of stunting. The idea is to support the targeted beneficiaries to be food secure during the Covid-19 pandemic as well as to impart beneficiaries with adaptive and mitigative interventions aimed at reducing the negative impact of the pandemic.

According to the E-SAPP Concept Note, 150 female headed HHs and female members of households would initially be targeted in two selected pilot districts. This approach is expected to assist targeted beneficiaries learn coping strategies “such as kitchen gardening, food production and preservation skills which includes learning about other sources of foods such as insects and indigenous fruits and vegetables in order to contribute to food security.”

 “The Food security packs will include legumes, bio fortified crops (OFSP), fruit and vegetable seeds. The beneficiaries will be encouraged to have kitchen gardens to fight malnutrition and encourage continuous access to nutritious foods during the pandemic and beyond. Key identified Partners include Good Nature Agro, WFP, Harvest Plus, MoA and MFL.” E-SAPP Concept Note, 2020.

One of the districts where smallholder farmers benefitted from COVID-19 Relief measures is Isoka in Muchinga province.

A smallholder farmer, Shepard Sikanika of Nachisungu area in Sansamwenje agriculture camp located 65 kilometres from Isoka, stated that his farm size is three hectares. Mr Sikanika, is a youth farmer aged 26, married with one child.

Due to the ravaging effects of COVID-19, he lacked the financial muscle to buy seed and fertilizer to cultivate for sale and food security purposes.

Mr Sikanika miraculously survived the effects of the pandemic, when E-SAPP provided relief to him through his FaaBS. He benefitted sweet potatoes, groundnuts, beans, vegetables which included Chinese and cabbage seedlings.

“I planted a quarter of a hectare (35 x35 plot) of vegetables I benefited from the programme,” said Mr Sikanika.

While for the other seedlings he received, he managed to cultivate two hectares.

Mr Sikanika disclosed that he never anticipated that groundnuts were good for nutrition purposes especially for his children.

“I appreciated the nutritious value of having meals, especially vegetables mixed with pounded groundnuts, for my family,” he disclosed.

Besides the nutrition value, he managed to raise enough funds after selling groundnuts which assisted to meet his family obligations.

Other than using groundnuts for nutritious purposes, he had his groundnuts processed into oil. The processed oil was utilized for home consumption and raised an income by selling part of it. This income raised was used to meet family needs.

“I was able to raise funds to provide for my family and take care of other household necessities as well as fertilizer to apply in my field,” an elated Mr Sikanika said.

Another beneficiary farmer, Tabo Nalwamba, a smallholder farmer in Nachisungu area under Sansamwenje Agriculture Camp in Isoka district of Muchinga province, is one of the beneficiaries of the COVID-19 Relief.

Ms Nalwamba narrates at the time E-SAPP gave her groundnuts, oranges, cabbage, seedlings and empty 50kilogramme bags, she literally had lost hope of cultivating last farming season due to no seedlings. Equally, she lacked finances to purchase seedlings and fertilizer for her crops, not until E-SAPP came to her aid.

“I didn’t have seedlings in December, 2020. I was worried how I would support my household,” Ms Nalwamba said.

She explained that after being given seedlings, she managed to plant Chinese and cabbage on a quarter of a lima. She was overjoyed because her crop stand performed extremely well due to the good rainfall.

Ms Nalwamba revealed that after harvesting, she earned an income after selling some of her produce, which assisted in paying for her children’s school fees.

For Ms Nalwamba, a lesson learnt is that vegetables can be grown all year round in order to have a regular income.

“I realised I should not depend on rainfed crops only but engage in irrigation during the dry season in order to have constant flow of income to sustain my family, since I grow vegetables for both home consumption and for sale,” Ms Nalwamba said.

The COVID-19 Relief has boosted the food security levels and provided a steady flow of income for the needy smallholder farmers in the district, which was not only timely but a good initiative. This should serve as an eye opener for farmers to always plan ahead amidst the pandemic.

SENIOR AGRO SCRIBE BADES FAREWELL TO THE CIVIL SERVICE

By HAPPY MULOLANI 

MOST civil servants tend to be gripped with fear for their lives once they retire from the civil service. In particular, once they reach their 50s years, they begin to engage in self-introspection of whether they invested adequately or devoted their energies towards a better life once they exit public office.

This is not the case with Mutukelwa Mukelabai who joined the civil service in the Ministry of Agriculture in 1982. He felt ready to leave the stage while people were still clapping at the initial 55 years retirement, if it was not for the change in retirement ages in 2015, which at the time needed clarity. Against all odds, he began pursuing his Master’s Degree in Peace and Conflict Resolution at the University of Zambia in 2018 when he was 57 years. His thematic area of focus was marriage and conflicts, a unique field he explored which saw him graduate virtually in 2020 amid the dreaded Corona Virus (COVID-19).

He entered the service in 1982 as an Agricultural Commodity Demonstrator after undergoing an Agricultural Induction training at Kanchomba Farm Institute in Pemba. The job entailed working closely with farmers demonstrating basic production techniques in specific commodities which included maize, sunflower, cotton, groundnuts and livestock. After serving for one and half years at Senkobo camp in Livingstone, he enrolled for a two year Certificate in Agriculture at Monze School of Agriculture. Upon graduation, he was appointed as an Agricultural Assistant. Later, he was elevated to District Agricultural Information Officer, thereafter pursued a Diploma in Agriculture at the Natural Resources Development College in Lusaka. At this point, he rose to the position of Radio Producer in Lusaka where he produced English radio programmes and was commonly known as “AgroMan.”

“I was happy to meet people who testified that they were influenced by my programmes as radio producer…to take up farming, take agriculture as a career, farmers improving their production by applying technology from radio broadcasts, students too that were helped with agricultural information in their training through the radio programmes,” says Mr Mukelabai.

He was elevated to Provincial Agricultural Information Officer based in Eastern province. While serving in Eastern province, a project under African Development Bank (ADB) began a four year project aimed at supporting agriculture interventions in the province among smallholder farmers. Ordinarily he would have stayed on and worked with the project, for both experience and also earn himself some money for his own personal investments, but he opted to pursue a four year, Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies at the University of Namibia at what he describes “late in life.”

“I entered University at 39 years of age but worked hard, applied myself well and deservedly graduated with Cumlaude, as Best Student in the School of Humanities, and awarded the Chancellors Medal for outstanding academic performance,” revealed Mr Mukelabai. 

His academic trajectory typically shows his ambition, determination and value for education despite the many opportunities of pursuing other attractive renumerating options.

A blend of the two professions is a rare attribute of holding agriculture and journalism but a vital combination which positioned him for effective communication to farmers for better extension work using mass media.

When he returned to Eastern province, the ADB project had phased out. Unsurprisingly, his career path took shape within a short space, as he was recommended to take over the position of Head-NAIS, now re-titled to Deputy Director, a position, he gladly accepted.

He admits that the position came with enormous responsibilities to shoulder, at the same time had its own set of challenges. It also provided a learning curve as he interacted with high level officials in the Ministry and key stakeholders engaged in agriculture development. He also faced a daunting task of image building of the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock and also strengthening its linkage with the external media.

Mr Mukelabai is one of the few who has served NAIS for 39 years, from the lowest structure of the Ministry from camp, district, provincial and national headquarters. This provided the required experience at all levels including the field for effective discharge of duties, which made him a suitable candidate for the post.

As he explains, “I rose through the ranks, on merit, a combination of attaining required qualifications, while serving and work experience at all levels, from Commodity Demonstrator to Deputy Director.”

Married with three children, Mr Mukelabai has shown leadership also to his family even through his academic pursuits which has seen his children emulate his value for education by pursuing their studies at the University of Namibia in Electrical Engineering, Economics and Science respectively.

Being at the helm of NAIS has been characterized with a set of challenges mainly centred on programming given its mandate to provide timely agricultural and extension messages to farmers and key players in the agriculture value chain through the different available forms of media.

Mr Mukelabai observed that paying for airtime on the national broadcaster, Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) to air documentaries and radio programmes has been strenuous amidst its limited resource envelope.  

For almost a year, NAIS only relied on the Press and Public Relations and Publications section covering and disseminating agriculture and technical information through various avenues of the print and broadcast media which mainly focused on news, news packages and feature articles. Partly, this affected the operations of NAIS for a while and its relevance to the farmers.

For instance, in 2019 all programming for radio programmes and documentaries were suspended due to a staggering bill of over K3, 000,000. Fortunately, the Ministry of Finance rescued NAIS by clearing off the bill. Evidently, such an amount is beyond NAIS’s allocated operational funds in the yellow book every year.

A better way of navigating this problem led to the birth of a Radio Station to continue serving the farmers whose objectives and goals NAIS strives to meet, given that farmers mostly rely on radio as the most available and cheapest medium of communication. Over the years, NAIS’s utmost priority has been to promote agriculture information and innovation through the integrated mass media meant to support the stressed extension service in information dissemination to farmers and stakeholders.

As part of his legacy, Mr Mukelabai is elated to exit NAIS having pioneered Lima Radio 106.9 Fm, which is cost effective and more interactive with farmers. The radio station is one of NAIS’s landmark achievements as it will widely air agricultural radio programmes to farmers and all players countrywide. Besides, he also advocated and lobbied for NAIS to be elevated to a full department in order to better serve farmers, though only achieved the elevation of Head NAIS to Deputy Director, one step to achieving directory status. Having presided over a cadre of highly specialized and qualified journalists, the attainment of department status remains his desire.

 “All attributes for a Department are in place, geographical spread and structure from district, province and national headquarters, variety of specialized functions, press, public relations, radio, television, publications, number of personnel, professionally qualified staff,” emphasizes Mr Mukelabai.  

To strengthen its core mandate, he proposes setting up a television station of its own, to present its unique agriculture programmes to farmers and players affordably in order to consistently provide service.

Fellow staff who worked with Mr Mukelabai during his reign hold his contributions in high esteem; Chief Agricultural Information Officer, Stubbs Malambo, a close colleague over the years reminiscences, “He has been my travelling buddy since our early 20s at college and work. I will forever remember him for pulling me back to the Ministry when I had almost left for teaching at Evelyn Hone College. He really wanted us to complete the journey together, but it has not to be…adieu Mukels!” Cameraman, Moses Katota recalls; I traversed many parts of this country with Mr Mukelabai and had a good working relationship over the years, I will greatly miss him as a colleague and friend. Whereas, Senior Agricultural Information Officer, Natasha Mhango says “For me I’d say he was a very humane boss who understood the balance between work and home life. This made him very approachable and even made someone comfortable enough to confide in him even in personal issues.”

While NAIS Senior Reporter, Lillian Mumba says “Mr Mukelabai has been a good leader. Even when he is not happy about something, he does not raise his voice in anger… He is like an elder brother guiding his younger siblings. He does not forget to write or make a radio interview despite his senior position.” And Reporter, Josiah Mpofu recounts “Mr Mukelabai is a man with a heart to help those around him, he does not look at whether you are related or not. For me, I can call him Father because he is a father to everyone. The few years I have spent with him in service he has been an encouragement to me and he has taught me that love should be shown to everyone regardless of the circumstances.”

TV Producer, David Chisanga feels sad at the departure of Mr Mukelabai but counts it all joy for teaching him to be persistence in his work, “I count it a blessing to have Mr Mukelabai as a boss. lnfact, he was my mentor and, more so, a father. He would counsel me from time to time and cheer me on. It’s sad he’s retiring from civil service, but I’m confident he’s not retiring from being a good father to me and young people. My appeal to him is to find time and continue mentoring us young men.”

And Southern Province Provincial Agricultural Information Officer, Lawrence Kabutu explains “We celebrate his departure from the civil service because we gained immensely from his experience in the area of creation of a new radio station for NAIS for dissemination of agriculture information to our clients the farmers, lobbying for agro news in Times of Zambia with support from the Principal Agricultural Information Officer In-charge of Press Happy Mulolani, lobbying for space also in AgriCoop newspaper and Daily nation newspapers. Other television stations include ABN were NAIS news has been established. All these special strides and others not itemized are aimed at ensuring NAIS visibility in dissemination of agriculture information and technologies to farmers aimed at ensuring household food security, increased nutrition and income among rural farmers…he also ensured public events such as National Agricultural and Commercial Show in Lusaka between the Ministry of Agriculture and Show society was well handled and coordinated between the society, ministry and provinces. The success of such events was partly as a result of his contribution in that area.”

District Agricultural Information Officer for Livingstone, Prisca Kabwe Nyirenda reflects “Mr Mukelabai is a fair and just person, respectful of others whether old or young. Mr Mukelabai was committed to developing a sense of community and team spirit in the NAIS family. He knew how to connect with officers and engaged in open communication and was very approachable. I feel close to him because I am always free to call him and you can sense the respect and consideration in the tone of his voice. He is one leader who believes in the growth of NAIS as he believed and supported the structure on the ground. He recognized the presence of DAIOs and their important role. I personally have covered a number of assignments which Mr Mukelabai directed organisations to contact me for coverage. He encouraged personal and professional development of officers…and also recognized the potential of someone whether young or old. I remember when l was only a few years in service, even though young and inexperienced he accorded me an opportunity to head NAIS Western province…though I was unable to take up the offer due to circumstances beyond my control at the time.” And District Agricultural Information Officer for Chilanga, Dorcas Kabuuya states “Mr Mukelabai was also passionate about NAIS becoming a department…he had a great vision for NAIS and would take it to greater heights. It is suffice to note that with his team at HQ, they have managed to deliver the much anticipated radio station for NAIS. Though he has retired, we shall continue using the radio station.”

Eastern Province Agricultural Information Officer, Gloria Siwisha says “I feel so sorry sir to learn that you’re leaving NAIS as I have never met anyone who believes so much in the power that good agricultural reporting has towards societal transformation as you do. I wish you the best in the next journey of your career. Thank you for being a hardworking and fantastic boss.”

Radio Producer, Charity Vuttah Chikumbe recalls “I have known Mr Mukelabai since 1985 at Monze College of Agriculture where he was my senior little did I know he will be my deputy Director. When I joined NAIS in 1987 I found him as an English Radio Producer in Lusaka. In 2009, I was transferred to Lusaka to Act as Radio Producer then I met him as Deputy Director (NAIS)...His commitment to duty and selfless behaviour vividly portrayed in his humble leadership style, so unique indeed. Go well our humble leader and may God prosper you as you start a new life in your retirement.”                             

On a personal note, he helped me achieve career growth while under his charge and I will greatly miss him.

Mr Mukelabai’s tenacity, vision, love, and attributes of encouraging officers to work extra hard in the core business of agriculture information dissemination has left a mark for the remaining staff to continue pursuing a dream of creating an agriculture television station having established a radio station that will soon be rolled to all provinces once transmitters are sourced and placed in provincial stations by collaborating partners. His humility and respect to all members of staff will be missed as he easily interacted with all staff under his charge as Head of NAIS.

Mr Mukelabai’s exiting the civil service has left an indelible mark which others need to take a leaf from. Ultimately, what counts is how he will be remembered for the immense contributions towards the welfare of NAIS and service to farmers and stakeholders.

ZAMBIA CALLED TO BOOST DATA CAPTURE SYSTEM

By HAPPY MULOLANI

THE need to enhance data capture is key if Zambia is to progress on an upward trajectory in order to contribute to the research and development of the agriculture sector.

One of the concerns is to have a multisectoral system with respect to how data is captured and shared to various stakeholders and players. 

For this reason, the Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) is implementing a CAADPX4 Programme which is funded by the European Union (EU) and administered by International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). It is implemented in collaboration with African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services in East and Central Africa (ASARECA), West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF) and Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa.

The programme is focusing on knowledge management strategies and data capture guidelines that will facilitate collection of data to meet the national commitments. To facilitate the effective implementation of information, communication management (ICKM), a national consultative workshop of key stakeholders involved in data capture across government ministries was recently held in Chisamba.

The purpose of the meeting was for CCARDESA to learn and draw lessons from national stakeholders on how organisations in Zambia collect information Malabo commitments data and reports are presented in line with the CAADP-XP4 Biennial report.

CCARDESA Consultant Fallys Masambuka highlighted that the necessity for tackling the bottlenecks amid data capture processes. Despite these concerns, Dr Masambuka observed that the National Agricultural Information Services (NAIS) has been instrumental in disseminating agriculture information to farmers and stakeholders, but more effort needs to be approached in a more focused and coordinated manner.

Dr Kanchewa remarked that there is lack of institutional support, which has affected how information is shared. The realization that most reports shared focus on project activities rather than on the Malabo Declaration is worrisome. It is also pacifying that when project activities are donor dependent, sustaining the process has been a serious challenge as it has affected coordination.

Dr Kanchewa further observed that one of the problems is lack of data sharing and limited data capture and documentation of local and indigenous knowledge and experiences.

“The absence of guidelines and strategies on data capture (tools and technologies) needs to be seriously addressed,” she said.

Dr Kanchewa emphasized that roles in terms of how monitoring and evaluation is done, who owns data and who are the user’s needs to be take into account.

“How data capture is done in Zambia is important to know, what technologies are used, what formats are used, what framework is used, who uses data and what is happening beyond these organisations,” she stressed.

These underlining factors need to be concretised by policy guidelines about data capture in order to make data capture and sharing available and vibrant to government and stakeholders, as doing so will tap into the opportunities and existing strengths.

Identifying these bottlenecks is key to coming up with a data capture strategy meant to promote a system for sustainable agriculture productivity.

Dr Kanchewa disclosed that one of the objectives of this research is to create a meaningful environment where data capture and knowledge management in the country is enhanced among various stakeholders in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Malabo declaration. Ideally, this requires to support the establishment of a functional and user focused data which is currently lacking in how data is captured.

And one of the participants, who is also a Communications Specialist, Natasha Mhango, explains that one of the major problems affecting data capture is lack of experts sharing their expert views on topical issues. This not only slows down the process but also affects the quality of reports shared.

“Often reports tend to be inconsistent because they either lack quality information or have old information,” Ms Mhango said.

The national agriculture policy is key to boosting the key issues of data capture and importance of promoting disclosure of public information within government ministries and beyond.

While data capture is a matter of concern, the trend shows that since the Malabo Declaration and CAADP (Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme) was initiated, some countries were performing fairly well up to 2019 but after that period, Rwanda is the only country which has been consistent.

“The preposition is to have a CAADP Champion who can influence decisions by interacting with politicians and other influential people on the potential benefits of enhancing agriculture development,” Chief Agricultural Economist, Christopher Mbewe, stressed.

This is premised on the understanding that to actualise and succeed in the implementation of a strategy of knowledge management and data capture

 the need for political will to exist if programmes of such a magnitude which require government support are to be.

Mr Mbewe explained that some people think CAADP is a project probably because of the way it was initiated. 

The progress in achieving the Malabo Declaration has been on a downward spiral due to lack of support systems that promote data capture hence the need to develop a data capture system. Suffice to state that the Malabo Declaration underscores the CAADP implementation as a national responsibility. CAADP is an African- led agenda initiative conceptualized to guide Africa’s agricultural transformation for sustained food security and socio-economic growth.

Presently, the country has no data protection policy on any form of data captured.

“Data protection for any form of data is not captured per se. There is also limited capacity to analyse data,” says Stephen Chundama from the Zambia Development Agency.

Mr Chundama also points out the need to strengthen governance structures in order to dismantle cylos. Evidently, structures are in place, it is just a matter of re-thinking how to make the system more efficient.

Clearly, there is need to have appropriate policies to protect indigenous data too.

Ultimately, there is need to support an integrated data capture system which should enhance adopted strategies and promote the agriculture sector and key players involved in this process. 

SOIL FERTILITY CHAMPION

By HAPPY MULOLANI

THE University of Zambia under the School of Agricultural Sciences and Organic Resource Management Soil Experts (ORM) team have unveiled VENON CHINENE, as the Champion of Soil Fertility.

Speaking at the Second National Innovation Platform on Soil Fertility in Lusaka, School of Agricultural Sciences Dean, Benson Chishala says Professor Venon Chinene has vast experience in soil fertility matters and will lead the cause for better strides in improving soil fertility.

Dr Chishala said Professor Chinene has been a University Administrator, First Vice Chancellor of Mulungushi University and land management lobbyist and is also an accomplished author on soil fertility.

He explained that the role of the soil fertility Champion is to influence decisions and be in the frontline and spearhead matters of soil fertility.

He said the Soil Fertility Champion will be a servant, representative and lobbyist at national level.

“The soil fertility issues need to be heard. We want to be recognized as a country for doing so much in the area of soil fertility,” says Dr Chishala.

Dr Chishala described Professor Chinene as a highly motivated farmer, who is also showcasing what he is practicing in terms of soil fertility.

And Professor Chinene says there is need to continuously advocate for better soil management practices aimed at sustainable production in Zambia and beyond.

He stressed that as a nation, there is need to invest in low input agriculture.

“We need to ensure we make the right investment into low input agriculture because it will potentially have a high return on investment,” said Professor Chinene.

Professor Chinene emphasized that adequate research into soil fertility and related issues has been conducted on low input agriculture.

“What is required is to commercialise low input agriculture and showcase research initiatives through agriculture shows and related platforms,” he said.

The project interventions of Farmer-driven Organic Resource Management to build Soil Fertility (ORM4Soil) have contributed to knowledge in promoting low input agriculture technologies and practices among farmer communities. Clearly, a myriad of opportunities is imminent given the anticipated increase in the world population to nine million by 2050.

Professor Chinene’s professional career as a soil scientist spans over 42 years, having been appointed as a lecturer at the age of 27 at the University of Zambia.

SOIL FERTILITY INITIATIVE MAKING STRIDES IN NORTHERN AND EASTERN PROVINCES

 By HAPPY MULOLANI

“ONE of the concerns for a long time is that farmers have concentrated on feeding plants without feeding the soil,” National Coordinator for the National Innovation Platform on Soil Fertility, and Dean of the School of the Agricultural Sciences at the University of Zambia, Benson Chishala disclosed.

Dr Chishala’s sentiments comes amid concerns in the decline in food production and food security which is attributed to the high soil acidity levels.  

“What is key is to understand is that soil fertility is closely tied to food security, hence the need to better nature the soil through improved approaches” he noted.

Over the years, this challenge has culminated in poor soil fertility levels leading to low production and food security.

With this identified gap, a project on restoring soil fertility was initiated in 2015. The first National Innovation Platform on Soil Fertility was held in December, 2018. It tabled some of the concerns, challenges and wayforward of addressing soil fertility management, resulting in the development of one key component, which entails properly managing the soil through appropriate approaches.

Dr Chishala emphasized that efforts to address the poverty levels through improved soil fertility practices is apparent. The status quo has culminated into the Organic Resource Management for Soil Fertility (ORM4SOIL) project with funding support from the Swedish. This project has been work collaboratively with research institutions, Ministry of Agriculture and University of Zambia and other agriculture development partners.

The project identified Chipata and Kasama districts in Eastern and Northern provinces as pilot districts to have trials and demonstrations on improved soil fertility practices in order to better their yields and contribute to increased food production and security.

He explained that this presents the opportunity for key players in agriculture development on fostering and bettering the soil fertility approaches to enhance farmer yields.

At a recent second National Innovation Platform on Soil Fertility heled in Lusaka, Acting District Agricultural Coordinator for Chipata, John Chuba highlighted that the innovation platforms were key in fostering communication campaigns which has played a significant role in creating awareness to farmers and more collaboration has been enhanced.

Mr Chuba finds traditional leaders has playing a critical role in encouraging farmers to adopt farming practices which improves.

“A lesson learnt from the projection intervention in the district is that the local leadership has been helped in educating farmers, noting that it is not easy to interact with chiefs and influence subjects,” he revealed.

He further explained the innovation platforms serve to enhance not only collaboration being also better presents strengthening of the existing linkage.

The beauty of these innovation platforms is that it has provided available options for farmers to use in improving the soil.

Loyce Banda, a farmer from Chibuvungwe in Chipata, says she has learnt how to use manure and Agroforestry practices which have significantly improved her yields.

Francis Mwenya, a farmer in Chilongoshi agricultural camp, is one of the farmers, who has drawn vital lessons learnt from useful from the innovation platform- the traditional of Fundikila, which is basically the use of grass, leaves and ridges. These approach has turned out to be different and effective from chitemene system.

Mr Mwenya Farmer appreciates Fundikila more than Chitemene because it was restoring soil nutrients and yields were better than using the Chitemene system.

The role of the sustainable soil fertility champion needs to influence policy advocacy and search for opportunities especially at expert platforms.

With the realization of improving soil fertility and boosting food production and security, the need for a soil fertility champion is key to influence appropriate policy decisions as a contribution to the agriculture sector.

Soil Fertility Champion, Venon Chinene stressed that as a nation, there is need invest in low input agriculture.

“We need to ensure we make right investment into low input agriculture because it will potentially have a high return on investment,” said Professor Chinene.

Professor Chinene emphasized that adequate research into soil fertility and related issues has been conducted on low input agriculture.

“What is required is to commercialization low input agriculture and showcase research initiatives through agriculture shows and related platforms,” he said.

The project interventions have contributed to knowledge in promoting low input agriculture technologies and practices among farmer communities. In all, a myriad of opportunities are imminent given the anticipated increase in the world population to nine million by 2050. This is a glimmer of hope for farmer communities to re-think and look at the great demand for technology and practices which should be able to sustain and feed a lot of people.

For this to happen, there must be concerted efforts and appropriate policy to improve the soils and land management in championing the ever increasing food demands globally. 

MITIGATING MEASURES FOR FALL ARMYWORMS

By HAPPY MULOLANI

“PREVIOUSLY, my maize fields used to be affected by Fall Army Worms resulting in low maize yields,” said Nyambe Mweene, a small-scale farmer in Mungule village in Lwimba agricultural camp in Chongwe district.

Mr Mweene shared his experiences that despite cultivating maize and beans on a relatively higher scale, the prevalence of Fall Armyworms in his field became worrisome given that a bigger part of his hectarge was getting affected and recording crop losses.

He revealed that he depended on purchasing pesticides to spray his field but the cost implications were too high as he had other family obligations.

This gloomy picture began to change when he was selected to be among one of the farmers to participate in on-farm trials on the use of low cost farming methods that supports agro-ecological approaches to pest management.

“In 2019, which was the first year of the project when I was selected as one of the 12 farmers to do trials in Lwimba agricultural camp, I intercropped maize with beans and managed to harvest 15 bags by 50kilogrammes in one lima which was better than preceding years when I would only harvest 10bags,” disclosed Mr Mweene.

Despite the dry spells encountered in 2020, the harvest increased to 20 bags by 50kilogramme in one lima. This, Mr Mweene says is a positive stride in his maize fields as compared to past years when he relied on spraying against Fall Armyworms. While this year, with the good rains experienced so far, he expects to harvest 25 bags by 50kilogramme in one lima, which is a significant gain in his crop production.

Another beneficiary farmer, Cephas Mvula of Kanakantapa explains that, as one of the farmers participating in on-farm trials of maize and beans, he has learnt that intercropping and mulching is a better approach than using pesticides, as most pesticides are destructive and costly.

Mr Mvula explained that it was very useful to learn the best possible ways of mitigating Fall Armyworms through the use of natural economy with low cost, as it improves productivity and livelihoods.  

Kanakantapa Resettlement Scheme, Extension Officer, Fridah Kasamika explained that farmers have learnt practices such as conservation agriculture tillage, with some selected cowpeas and maize, maize and selected legumes.

Ms Kasamika says in her camp, 12 farmers were selected to participate in on-farm trials. So far, farmers have been using these demonstrations plots to learn and share experiences on the approaches to fight Fall Armyworms and improve their yields.  

These trials are supported by a five year project, which is a partnership between the World Agroforestry-(ICRAF) and the Ministry of Agriculture through its research department, the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute at Mount Makulu. It seeks to alleviate the impact of Fall Army Worm on smallholder farms through the use of low-cost pest control strategies based on ecological approaches. The project is also supported by other partners such as NORAD.

The project through its experts, encourages farmers to avoid using a variety of pesticides in their fields because they are not only toxic but dangerous to use. Instead, promoting agro ecological approaches to offer alternative solutions which is “cheaper, safer and better for the environment.” Some of the Agro-ecological approaches to pest management such as conservation farming which focuses on promoting practices such as crop rotation, minimum tillage, mulching and composting. Others include intercropping, diversifying crop types in order to protect natural habitats and enhance biodiversity in farmers’ fields. And the identification of specific interventions which encourage natural enemies such ass “providing nest sites for predatory insects.”

Since inception, the project has witnessed farmers’ yields slowly but surely improve through the application of ecological approaches meant to mitigate Fall Armyworms and boost maize yields.

Senior Researcher at the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute, Gilson Chipabika explains that trials are being conducted on how to mitigate Fall armyworms. The researchers collect data on infestation rates, damage and yields to examine the cost effectiveness.

Mr Chipabika said that during the research, farmers will gain knowledge on Fall Armyworm and its natural enemies.

He says that the project targets to make pesticides redundant and use nature to address the impact of pests through the use of Agro ecological approaches such as inter crop, mulching and crop residue among others which are cheaper, safer and better for the environment.

 

According to ICRAF Project Lead Investigator, Rhett Harrison, “The target is to make chemical pesticides redundant and the use nature to do the work us.”

Professor Harrison further discloses that most pesticides are highly toxic and dangerous to use. Agro-ecological approaches offers alternative solutions, which is rather cheaper, safer and better for the environment.

He emphasizes the need for government to ensure farmers are offered with solutions which are long-term. Other than, natural solutions, if they are to use pesticides its better for them to utilise biological and botanical pesticides which are safer though costly for many small-scale farmers. What is required is to offer subsidies to lower the cost of pesticides.

The project is working with 180 small-scale farmers in Zambia and Malawi and is conducting on-farm trials. At inception of the trials, farmers were supplied with inputs which includes maize, soyabean, cowpea, groundnut and common bean seeds. To effectively manage these trials, technical support is being offered to the farmers by researchers.

Deputy Director at Zambia Agriculture Research Institute, Ivor Mukuka observes that the effective utilization of technology is feasible as can be seen from research findings of the trials located in various farmers catchment areas.

Mr Mukuka emphasized that farmers need to really use technology to help them improve their yields and food security.

“From the research findings, appropriate information will be packaged and shared with the farmers. This information is meant to assist farmers improve their productivity and production as it is in line with the mandate of the government and its partner ICRAF,” stressed Mr Mukuka.

It is expected the knowledge generated from these research findings will be useful in developing national pest control strategies across Southern African countries. Such an approach is endeavours to boost productivity, production and incomes of small-scale farmers.

AGRA AND MOA PARTNERSHIP TO BOOST THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR

 By HAPPY MULOLANI

TO better support the agriculture sector, the necessity to build strategic partnerships is key, especially with organizations that are already engaged in investing in the agriculture sector in order to improve livelihoods.

Amidst an array of struggles, farmers in Zambia grapple with unproductive soil, unreliable water supplies, low-quality seeds, and scarce markets for their crops. This situation resulted in the Government of Zambia signing an agreement with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) recently in Lusaka.

AGRA is an organisation which started in 2006 with the aim of investing in agriculture as a way of contributing towards poverty reduction and hunger in Africa. It supports millions of smallholder farmers across the continent. Ideally, smallholder farmers comprise 70 percent of Africa’s population and the intention of AGRA is to ensure these smallholder farmers efforts are enhanced by increasing their productivity and incomes. It is encouraging that AGRA has supported over 400 projects, and this has included offering interventions such as developing and delivering “better seeds, increase farm yields, improve soil fertility, upgrade facilities, improve market information systems, strengthen farmers’ associations, expand access to credit for farmers and small suppliers, and advocate for national policies to benefit smallholder farmers.”

AGRA plays a pivotal role in transforming the agricultural sector in Africa and its food system- which is suitable to the conditions in Africa and areas whose emphasis safeguards the environment. This position has enabled AGRA to build an alliance of partners, comprising of farmers and their organizations, governments, agricultural research organizations, the private sector, local non-governmental organizations, and civil society. The involvement of these key players is to significantly improve the productivity and incomes of smallholder farmers, majority of these are women.

Following calls by former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s for an exclusive “green revolution”, AGRA was birthed to improve smallholder farm productivity at the same time preserve the environment. It is an independent organization based in Africa and has representation of leaders at all levels which includes influential African political, business leaders, scientists and international experts in agriculture and economic development.

An AGRA Report indicates that “AGRA’s strategy is to facilitate the creation of an efficient African food system through grants and capacity-building assistance to institutions needing to improve their productivity of smallholder farmers.”

It supports activities in 16 countries in Africa, with more prominence to Ghana, Mali, Mozambique and Tanzania. Their aim is to improve production of staple crops in “breadbasket” in places deemed to have relatively good soil, adequate rainfall, and basic infrastructure. Whatever approaches work in specific places can be adopted in other areas and countries with comparable conditions. Besides the 16 countries, AGRA also offers its support to Sudan, Sierra Leone and Liberia. These countries are considered post-conflict locations and require support to resuscitate their agriculture prowess.

Zambia becomes the 17^th country to be a member country of AGRA. AGRA is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya and promotes African led interventions meant to boost agriculture interventions.

In a recent signing ceremony with the Government of Zambia, President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, Agnes Kalibata highlighted the deliberate efforts directed towards supporting agriculture interventions given the apparent need to increase productivity and food security among smallholder farmers.

Through this partnership between AGRA and Zambia, it is expected that more effort will be directed towards transforming food systems in order to benefit the citizens. It is also hoped that mechanisms which promote resilient and stronger sustainable food systems will be strengthened in order to address poverty and hunger.

Minister of Agriculture, Michael Katambo hailed AGRA for responding to a request made to AGRA, to enable Zambia become its member.

Mr Katambo explained that prior to signing this agreement, AGRA was still supporting key areas in the agriculture sector.

“AGRA has supported research development at the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI) and seed development with the Seed Control and Certification Institute (SCCI),” he stressed.

Mr Katambo reaffirmed that Zambia had prioritised the agriculture sector as a strategic sector aimed at fostering economic growth and poverty reduction.

“Government intends to attain its objective of job creation, economic growth and human development through agriculture. To achieve this, government is promoting value-addition, irrigation development and export of agriculture produce, agriculture diversification, private sector participation and building resilience to climate change especially among small-scale farmers,” disclosed Mr Katambo.

He also pointed out that the country had recorded a bumper harvest last farming season. However, these gains achieved in 2019/2020 were overshadowed last year with the climatic shocks experienced, coupled with outbreaks of Fall Army worms and African Migratory Locust as well as the dreaded Corona Virus (COVID-19), which has proved to be a drain on government funds.

Despite these challenges which have affected small-scale farmers in various parts of the country, it is envisaged the admission of Zambia as a member of AGRA, will be beneficial to assist in upscaling agriculture development in the country. 

                                          

 INCUBATORS   ENHANCE   POULTRY   PRODUCTION

By HAPPY MULOLANI

THE need for smallholder farmers to engage in livestock production is apparent given that the livestock sector in Zambia is increasingly a vital component of Zambia’s economy. Admittedly, the sector has potential and capacity to contribute towards poverty alleviation thereby increasing the socio-economic status of most people to ultimately contribute to the economic growth of the country.

According to the Status Report of Smallholder Livestock Sector in Zambia, the smallholder sector makes up 80% of the country’s total livestock, with only 20% under the commercial sector.

In particular, poultry production is one of the enterprises smallholder farmers have aggressively taken up which has proved to be offering these farmers reasonable marginal profits.

Given the high demand for poultry products such as eggs, which is a product widely used for different purposes, the need to innovate is key to meet the already escalating demand for eggs among farmer communities, other key players and potential buyers. It is envisioned that the production capacity is enhanced; and also boost the livestock sector in Zambia

For this reason, an entrepreneur has made drastic strides in pursuing this niche of making incubator machines meant to hatch eggs at a high capacity, as it is a necessity if the ever increasing market demand is to be met.

Emmanuel Chisha, is a Lusaka based entrepreneur and recounts how he opted to identify a niche in the livestock sector. His idea was to contribute to innovations to enable both smallholder and commercial farmers’ boost their production capacities in the sector.

Mr Chisha narrates that he set-up Sebro Products, an Incubator manufacturing company in 2009 through establishing a network of successful relationships with clients, in this case smallholder farmers and other prospective buyers both locally and regionally. At first, this idea looked over ambitious but turned out to be workable as he manufactured 300 incubators, which he managed to promptly supply.

“The feedback l got was overwhelming as our farmers, who were potentially the targeted buyers were excited at the prospect of meeting the high demand of eggs on the market,” equipped Mr Chisha.

He explained that the incubator sizes vary depending on one’s production capacity.

“The smallest incubator can accommodate 520 chicken eggs while the largest can successfully handle 16,400 chicken eggs,” said Mr Chisha.

The incubators are not necessarily complex in their operation but quite user friendly technology which any user can easily adapt to.

“Our incubators have user-friendly technology which seamlessly automates the hatching process. Once the eggs are in place, the systems are activated to automatically control the humidity and turn the eggs. Besides, the technology installed also regulates the environment temperature. This enables a stress-free workflow throughout the incubation period which, for chicken eggs, is about 21 days,” explained Mr Chisha.

Clearly, the purchase of these incubators is not restrictive to any group but is offered to a range of potential buyers.

He adds that, “the incubators are purchased by small farming lobbyists, people testing the water of poultry farming to full-fledged hatcheries.”  

The incubators run at optimum capacity and supplies are not limited to Lusaka clients but cater for all provinces in the country.

“We are usually running at full capacity. Once an order is placed, our team delivers the customer’s order within seven working days. We have supplied to customers within town and in other provinces through our logistics partners,” he assures.

Mr Chisha observes that this innovation is a pioneer industry which has been birthed and attributes its rapid growth to the proliferation of the free range poultry industry. The internet is also one of the avenues that has catalyzed online learning as it offers a lot of available resources.

“This has been catalyzed by the ease of access to learning resources through the internet and other channels,” he said.

The government’s emphasis through the Seventh National Development Plan (7NDP) on the importance of farmers taking farming as a business and increasing household incomes has witnessed the promotion of an entrepreneurship culture coupled with the awareness created on healthy eating habits, which has motivated households to breed their own chickens.

The realization of most households that free range chickens are a healthier option has also prompted farmers to opt for these chickens because their diet has little or no artificial or synthetic chemicals known to be carcinogenic, which tends to lead to health complications to human body once consumed for extended periods.

With the status quo, there are enormous business opportunities for incubator owners to gain from, such as providing a hatching service whilst clients who have their own eggs wishing to have them hatched are charged a fee per egg. And the other option is breeding stock of chickens together with the incubator.

“The breeding stock will lay enough eggs to grow your stock for meat as well as sell day-old-chicks,” notes Mr Chisha.

He echoes that incubator innovation is a lucrative business which has improved the livelihood of many households. From his own experiences and interactions in the industry, he testifies that many inventors have turned into successful Small Medium Enterprises (SME), after their humble beginnings.

One of the farmers in Chikumanino area in Kasama, Mirriam Gondwe purchased an incubator in 2016 from Mr Chisha, which has a capacity to hatch 2,500 chicken eggs.

Mrs Gondwe says that the incubator is used to hatch eggs for broilers, village chickens and quails.

 “The demand is overwhelming at the moment, when I purchased the incubator we had buyers outside Kasama such as from Lusaka, Copperbelt, Muchinga and Luapula provinces,” she disclosed.

Mrs Gondwe says presently she has a list of buyers, which has meant scheduling every thursdays as collection days for buyers in order to meet the high demand.

She reveals that she makes a minimum profit of K8, 000 per month and K15, 000 maximum per month which is a positive stride in her business.

The only setback is the high cost of power and feed which tends to lead to high operational costs in her hatching business. With this realisation, Mrs Gondwe has committed herself to putting in place a backup system and also purchase a generator to supplement the power and feed concerns.

“Purchasing a generator and having a backup system will greatly boost and grow the business further,” she reaffirms.

With an enabling environment and the supportive livestock policy framework, which takes into account the growth of the livestock sector through such innovations, it is hoped more support will be directed towards the provision of quality technology, which should be consistent. In this way, more technological improvements will support the already existing innovation and make it satisfying to more users.

ZAMBIA'S TOP VARSITY JOINS FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE

By HAPPY MULOLANI

Climate change is on top of the agenda for most countries. Its devastating effects on productive sectors of some countries is immeasurable. Zambia is one of the countries affected by climate change as it has experienced droughts, pests, floods and deforestation. 

According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), this year alone, severe drought has negatively impacted 11million people in nine countries, which includes Zambia. This drought is considered the worst of its kind recorded in 35 years. Admittedly, these affected countries require immediate support to address this problem.

In Zambia, the agriculture sector remains key and is considered the second after the mining sector. This prompted the country to prioritise the agriculture sector through development plans such as the Seventh National Development (7NDP), which outlines the importance of not “leaving anyone behind” as a way of fostering the country’s economic growth.

Given the status quo, the University of Zambia is one of the country’s research institutions which has embarked on developing climate smart agriculture technologies to address climate change in order to assist smallholder farmers upscale their agriculture production and productivity.

University of Zambia Dean of the School of Agricultural Sciences, Benson Chishala explained that the University embarked on developing research initiatives aimed at addressing the country’s climatic shocks and boosting food security.

Dr Chishala underscored the importance of embarking on research aimed at immediately providing a panacea to the effects of climate change affecting especially rural farmers.

And Senior Lecturer in the Department of Plant Science under the School of Agricultural Sciences, Kalaluka Munyinda reaffirmed the need to mitigate the climatic shocks and avert food insecurity of most smallholder farmers in light of the drought which had hit the country, resulting in a decline of yields per hectare.

He explained that the institution has developed improved varieties such as Maize MGV640 and legumes which produce higher yields per hectare.

“These varieties record between 16 tonnes per hectare to 20 tonnes per hectare. This is in contrast to the initial 10 tonnes prior to developing these improved varieties,” disclosed Dr Munyende.

These developed varieties are expected to help farmers in engaging not only climate smart agriculture practices but also have better yields during the 2020/2021 farming season.

These sentiments come in the wake of the recent launch of the National Crop Planting season in Eastern province by Republican President Edgar Lungu.

The institution has on-going trials of seed varieties, which include maize and legumes in Lusitu and Chirundu to assess their suitable and production capacities.

But these initiatives have been marred by some challenges such as financing which would have seen more varieties developed for the betterment of farmer communities.

Assistant Dean of the School of Agricultural Sciences, John Shindano observes that the institution has been working with some partners in combating the effects of climate change amidst low financing. Of concern is that the fight against climate change requires concerted efforts if more farmers are to be assisted and improve food security.

Dr Shindano’s views resonate with a recent report released which argues that there has been low financing for climate change. This notion calls for increased financing from partners and stakeholders to contribute towards addressing climate change.

Most of the financing for research is externally sourced but the need to re-think this approach by local partners getting on board to help finance climate change in the local context is obvious. This approach is likely to promote more broad based solutions to curb the devastating effects of climate change

Earlier this year, IFAD is one of the international organization which has released US$12 million to assist rural small-scale farmers in adapting to climate change and reduce green house gas emissions. Equally, the Swedish government is also one of the cooperating partners of IFAD, which availed funds to effectively implement and contribute towards reducing climatic changes this year.

IFAD President Gilbert Houngbo expressed concern on the need to avert the severe climatic conditions. This resulted in the release of the funds towards supporting the fight against the effects of climate change of households and incomes of rural farmers.

It is notable that investment is key to address climate change as it will enable rural people and farmers take adaptation actions in their various agriculture value chains. 

Ultimately, research and financing are important catalysts which need to bring about positive changes through developing climate resilient varieties and also ensure farmers adapt to these initiatives aimed at promoting increased food security. Thus, support is required to be directed towards expertise to help devise mechanisms aimed at improving productivity within a competitive environment like Zambia.