Govt moves to promote agriculture commercialization

By Memory Chatonda

BLANTYRE, April 19, Mana: Government is geared to promote agriculture productivity and commercialization in the country, Director in the Department of Animal Health and Livestock Development Dr Julius Chulu has said.

Chulu said the move will be achieved by encouraging farmers to keep different livestock, adopt and practice new technologies as well as cultivate different crops that could withstand adverse effects of climate change that the country is currently experiencing.

Chulu was speaking on Tuesday during the Blantyre Agriculture Development Division (BLADD) Kulima 5thCohort master trainers and community based facilitators’ field day at Thuchira in Mulanje.

Chulu said currently the ministry in collaboration with different partners in agriculture sector is doing everything possible to produce master trainers and community based facilitators who could inculcate in the farmers improved farming technologies to promote sustainable agriculture commercialization.

“We want farmers to take agriculture as business that they can depend on for food, nutrition and income,” he said.

He revealed that currently, Malawi is making the headway towards achieving agriculture productivity and commercialization as enshrined in Malawi 2063 agenda.

In her remarks, BLADD Programme Manager Dr Patricia Mayuni described the field day as a great opportunity for farmers to learn and adopt modern farming technologies of cultivating different crops and also keeping livestock.

One of the farmers, Francis Glemu from Traditional Authority Nkalo in Mulanje thanked the BLADD for organizing the field day.

He said through such field days, he has learnt different innovative ideas that have assisted him to improve in his farming.

“Such lessons have yielded maximum returns to me, both in crops and livestock production.  At the moment, for instance, I own livestock such as goats and cows,” he said.

The field day which was organized by BLADD, Food and Agriculture Organisation and GIZ was held under the theme ‘Agriculture diversification: key to food, nutrition and income security for resilience to climate change.’

Mana/mkc