COMMENT - Notwithstanding the racist use of language, at least finally someone is admitting the existence of what this 'reporter' calls 'peasant farmers'.
Zambia's farming revolution poster boy
By Kieron Humphrey
Lusaka, Zambia
Page last updated at 06:48 GMT, Tuesday, 6 April 2010 07:48 UK
Elleman Mumba makes an unlikely celebrity. He is not a singer nor a footballer - he is a 54-year-old peasant farmer from southern Zambia.
Yet he has appeared on the front page of a national newspaper and been interviewed for numerous radio and television programmes.
They said I was using juju in my field. I felt very bad, but I knew I wasn't using witchcraft
Elleman Mumba
What explains his fame?
Mr Mumba grows maize and groundnuts on his small plot of land in Shimabala, just south of Lusaka.
Feeding his family used to be a problem.
"The yield was very little. We were always looking for hand-outs; we had to rely on relief food."
Quiet agricultural revolution
Like many farmers, Mr Mumba had no oxen of his own to plough his field.
He had to wait in line to hire some, which meant he often failed to plant as soon as the first rains fell - with disastrous consequences.
A chaka hoe means there is no need to plough with oxen
Researchers say that for each day's delay, the potential yield shrinks by between 1% and 2%.
Then, in 1997, Mr Mumba suddenly found himself in the vanguard of a quiet agricultural revolution.
His wife had been given free training in a system called conservation farming, and persuaded him to try it.
Conservation farming is about doing less to get more. Instead of ploughing entire fields, farmers till and plant in evenly spaced basins.
Only a tenth of the land area is disturbed.
This reduces erosion and run-off - where soil and nutrients are washed away by rain.
"That season I had 68 bags of maize - enough to feed my family and buy four cattle," he says, blazing with pride at the recollection.
Using just a wide-bladed traditional chaka hoe, Mr Mumba had dug a series of shallow rectangular planting basins in his field during the dry season.
It was a tough job to break the sun-baked soil, but he persevered, and was ready to sow his seed with the first rains.
Suspicious success
Punctual planting was not the only reason for Mr Mumba's bumper crop.
I pay for my children to attend school. I can pay for the grandchildren to go to nursery school. So when I die, they will be able to excel on their own
Elleman Mumba
The basins had punched through the layer of compacted earth created under the topsoil by repeated ploughing. Roots and rain no longer struggled to penetrate this "plough pan".
The crop flourished in spite of low rainfall and some of Mr Mumba's neighbours regarded his success with suspicion.
"They said I was using juju in my field. I felt very bad, but I knew I wasn't using witchcraft. I told them: 'In CF there's no juju. It's just that you conserve water, so even when the rains are light, you are able to get something.'"
Now many of those who called him a witchdoctor have followed him into conservation farming.
It is a growing trend.
Easier and easier
Across the country there are more than 160,000 farmers using basins or other minimum tillage methods, including large-scale commercial farmers.
For big or small, the principles are the same:
disturb the soil as little as possible
use natural processes as well as fertiliser to replenish its nutrients
leave crop residue in situ rather than burning it off
rotate crops
Musango trees act as an organic fertiliser through leaf shedding
And the benefits?
"I pay for my children to attend school," says Mr Mumba, a father of six, "I can pay for the grandchildren to go to nursery school. So when I die, they will be able to excel on their own."
Mr Mumba also enjoys the reduction in his workload.
The basins are always sited in the same place, so digging becomes easier with each successive year. Weeding takes less time because fertiliser has been applied only to the basins and not the whole field.
His crop is as high and healthy as ever this year, but it has cost him less effort.
In the future it will cost less money too.
Just hands and a hoe
Protruding at regular intervals above Mr Mumba's crop are the thorny branches of young musango trees.
Also called winterthorn or ana tree, this unusual acacia sheds its leaves just as the first rains fall, creating a nitrogen- and nutrient-rich carpet.
Conservation farming has meant Mr Mumba's family never need food aid
When mature, Mr Mumba's musangos will act as an organic fertiliser factory, and reduce his expenditure on artificial inputs.
Zambia's Conservation Farming Unit is not just promoting the musango's potential for fertilising the soil.
It says the tree could play an important role in combating deforestation, both through planting programmes and by reducing the need for farmers to slash and burn new areas to access fertile soil.
Dissenters say there is not enough empirical evidence to support the promotion of conservation farming as a magic bullet for sub-Saharan Africa's food shortfall.
But several countries in the region are investigating its potential, hence the stream of visitors to Mr Mumba's door.
They want to see if an average farmer really can produce such good results with just his hands and a hoe.
Giggling at all the attention he is getting, Mr Mumba is pleased to say yes, he can.
Labels: CONSERVATION FARMIING, ELLEMAN MUMBA
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Firm sponsors conservation projects
Agriculture Reporter
National Foods Limited is sponsoring conservation agriculture training projects for families of its workers as a way of boosting their household food security.
The beneficiaries underwent a two-day farming course at Foundation for Farming Centre in Mt Hampden, Harare recently.
National Foods Limited Workers Trust administrator, Ms Annette Ridge, said beneficiaries of the project were drawn from the company’s depots countrywide.
"The first group has 39 people under training and these are from Harare, Bulawayo and Gweru among other areas," she said. According to Ms Ridge, farming knowledge was vital in economically empowering the beneficiaries.
"Education is a blessing especially for agriculture. After the course, employees and their families will be able to boost their household food security," she said.
Labels: CONSERVATION FARMIING, NATIONAL FOODS LIMITED
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WFP urges adoption of conservation farming
By Agness Changala
Fri 20 Nov. 2009, 04:00 CAT
WORLD Food Programme (WFP) country director Ricaldo Pablo has advised farmers to adopt conservation farming to improve production in view of the reduced inputs in the 2009/2010 farming season.
In an interview, Pablo observed that despite the reduced amount of farming inputs to farmers, fertiliser could not change the way the country produced crops or increase the average productivity per hectare if conservative ways of farming were not implemented.
“Fertiliser per se cannot change the way we produce or increase average productivity. The Fertiliser Support Programme (FSP) at the moment is probably taking a very large amount of the budget of the Ministry of Agriculture and as a result, not allowing for other critical areas of support to the farmers,” he said.
Pablo said the distribution of fertiliser should be targeted at small-scale farmers who he said did not have access to it.
“The target needs to actually be given particularly to the small-scale farmers where the fertiliser never reaches,” he said.
And Pablo said there was need for the government to look at the import and export capacities of agriculture as a way of improving the sector other than providing critical services to farmers.
He said although the government policies in terms of supporting the farmers were broad, fertiliser could not be taken out of context.
Pablo also called for improved agriculture market, access to farming inputs to small scale farmers and support in terms of policy.
He further said commodity exchange allowed for the prices to be set in a transparent manner where all players were working together to set a right price for the commodities.
Pablo said there was also need to re-look at the role of Food Reserve Agency (FRA).
“I think it’s important that the FRA maintains its support and response capacity by continuing with its role in pricing of all agriculture produce,” said Pablo.
Labels: CONSERVATION FARMIING, RICALDO PABLO, WFP
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Specialist calls for a change in farming systems
Written by Lawrence Kabutu in Kabwe
Sunday, September 06, 2009 6:59:33 PM
CHIEF agricultural specialist under land husbandry in the Ministry of agriculture and Cooperatives Martin Sishekanu has called for a change in farming systems if crop yields are to be improved in the country.
Presenting a paper on conservation agriculture in Zambia in Kabwe at Zannet Lodge, Sishekanu said the current 1.2 to 1.3 metric tonnes per hectare of maize were far too low.
He bemoaned that the low crop production levels which he said could only be reversed by changing farming systems through the use of conservation agriculture.
Sishekanu noted that 95 per cent of the cultivated land in Zambia was under rain-fed agriculture characterised by poor productivity.
He explained that crop yields could be increased by reserving crop residues in the fields in a bid to improve soil fertility, organic matter content and moisture retention among other strategies in conservation agriculture.
Sishekanu said that conservation agriculture adoption was not impressive because of the crop and livestock conflict which had not been resolved.
He pointed out that 4.8 million to 10 million of land was under livestock, which was grazing crop residues that were beneficial in conservation agriculture.
Sishekanu, responding to a question on what should be done following free range communal grazing of livestock on crop residues, said live fencing could be an alternative to protect crop residues if conservation agriculture was to be promoted.
He clarified that the farming communities should change the farming systems by looking after their animals to ensure that they didn't graze crop residues.
Sishekanu implored agriculture information officers to contribute towards improved and increased yields among conservation agriculture farmers of up to three times in maize production through the mass media that included electronic and print media programmes and articles.
He disclosed that research had indicated that yields had improved through conservation agriculture by 60 to 70 per cent in maize production, 40 to 60 per cent in cotton yields and 40 to 50 per cent in legume crop yields.
Labels: CONSERVATION FARMIING, FARMING, MARTIN SISHEKANU
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Chituwo counsels farmers on conservation farming
Written by Christopher Chipemba in Mbala
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 3:34:38 PM
AGRICULTURE minister Dr Brian Chituwo has urged farmers to adopt intensive conservation farming in order to increase their maize yields. Visiting farmers at Chinenke irrigation project in Mbala on Sunday, Dr Chituwo said the government would provide the required support to enable farmers increase their
yield per hectare from the current 1.5 metric tonnes to 3 metric tonnes.
He said in the near future, the inputs provided to farmers under the Fertiliser Support Programme would include lime to neutralise the acidic soils that were prominent in Northern Province.
Dr Chituwo commended farmers at Chinenke for effectively utilising the community water furrow for irrigation.
He called on all the extension staff from the ministry of agriculture to continue guiding farmers on how to use innovative farming technologies, which would promote sustenance of good soil structures.
Meanwhile, farmers in Chinenke have appealed to the government to quickly avail money to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) to enable them resume buying maize from farmers in the district.
The farmers said though they commend the government for securing more funds, they were worried that a lot of maize would go to waste if the government did not release the money it had sourced quickly.
According to the report provided to Dr Chituwo during his visit, by Mbala district agriculture coordinator Andrew Banda, only 75,043 x 50 kilogramme bags had been bought by both the FRA and a private miller from an estimated total of 200,000 bags available in the district.
Labels: BRIAN CHITUWO, CONSERVATION FARMIING
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Regional integration vital for food security, says Namachila
Written by Florence Bupe
Tuesday, April 07, 2009 4:01:01 PM
AGRICULTURE permanent secretary Bernard Namachila has observed that regional integration is vital to the attainment of food security at every level.
During the regional Conservation Agriculture Tour at Pamodzi Hotel yesterday, Namachila called on African countries to unite and collectively adopt farming methods that would foster increased agricultural productivity.
“The Ministry of Agriculture is committed to working with other stakeholders to ensure that we implement policies that will promote healthy farming methods. At regional level, conservation farming can greatly be promoted through integration,” he said.
The Conservation Agriculture Tour has been organised by cooperating partners supporting the sector, including the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and has drawn participants from Malawi, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Mozambique.
Namachila said the Ministry of Agriculture planned to scale up a sustainable approach to increase agricultural productivity through the promotion of conservation farming.
He complained that there was currently inadequate information and technology to spread the use of conservation farming among small-scale farmers.
“There is limited awareness of technology and sharing of documentation showing the benefits of conservation farming among our small-holder farmers,” said Namachila.
“We need to identify policies to further the practicing of conservation farming.”
And FAO representative Dr Noureddin Mona stressed that proper and efficient use of land and water resources was cardinal for sustainable farm productivity.
“It is time that the region critically looks at an approach such as this one which recognises that proper and efficient use of land and water resources is cardinal for sustainable farm productivity as new quality land for agricultural expansion is getting more scarce, coupled with the need to preserve enough forest land to act as sinks and reservoirs for greenhouse gases that would otherwise contribute to climate change and rainfall variability,” said Dr Mona.
Meanwhile, Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) president Jervis Zimba called for stronger ties between small-scale farmers and the private sector in promoting conservation farming.
Labels: BERNARD NAMACHILA, CONSERVATION FARMIING, FOOD, REGIONAL INTEGRATION
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What is the best farming system?
IN ecological systems, there are no simple answers because easy solutions are always unstable ones, but there is a better agricultural system that farmers should employ. Such systems evolve as our knowledge base increases and as technology develops. Attitudes also change and farmers are now more environmentally conscious than ever before, in line with community expectations.
But, evolving farming systems must be intensively monitored to measure performance and to make adjustments where undesirable trends are identified. As a result, promoting environmental friendly farming technologies is a welcome idea as it will help eradicate the dependence that farmers have on methods that harm the environment. Farmers should, therefore, try technologies such as organic production because it is one way to save and regenerate soils, thereby promoting environmental friendly crops.
With soaring food prices world over, the best thing farmers can do is save the source of life. It is particularly important for small-scale farmers to depend on subsistence agriculture to ensure that key ecosystem functions are maintained. Biodiversity and ecosystem services are the living basis for humanity’s well-being. Everyone in the world depends on nature and ecosystem services to provide the conditions for a healthy life.
Biodiversity benefits people through more than just its contribution to immediate material welfare and livelihoods, but also contributes to long-term security and resilience. Non-degraded ecosystems have shown to be more robust and protecting against natural disasters such as droughts and floods.
Over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly than any comparable period of time in human history. This has been done with a view to meeting rapidly growing demand for food, fresh water, timber and fuel.
To reduce poverty, the ecosystem functions which provide the needed services have to be maintained through more targeted biodiversity conservation.
Dr Kenneth Nkowani, director at the department of Environment and Natural Resources says “if we are to conserve biodiversity, it is important to relate it to the livelihood of the people of Zambia. At global level there are targets set for the year 2010.”
Dr Nkowani explains that the Zambian Government has translated the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) into Tonga and Lozi in Southern and Western provinces so that people understand the issue at hand. Biodiversity loss has immensely contributed to the below normal rainfall experienced in the two provinces.
“Over-grazing and bad farming methods that some farmers’ use has exacerbated the loss,” he reveals. He also says agro-ecological zones will shift due to climate change and issues of species, pests and plants may change if no proactive measures are taken.
“It is every Zambian’s responsibility to look after the resource if our livelihood is to be sustained, emphasises Dr Nkowani, adding that food production is directly related to biodiversity conservation.
He explains that biodiversity is important for today and generations to come and impact heavily on agriculture because it has a big link with food production, forestry, fisheries and mining.
Dr Nkowani also stresses the need for people to work hand in hand with the Government in order to achieve the 2010 biodiversity target, failure to which biodiversity loss will increase to the detriment of the nation.
He adds that it is also important for the Zambian Government to take action before 2035 and attach three per cent of the GDP towards activities which can safeguard ecosystem and biodiversity.
In a separate interview, Ignatius Makumba, acting chief of Natural Resources Management at the same department, says Zambia has done quite a lot in achieving the 2010 biodiversity target despite the numerous challenges.
“We are on track but you should realise that there are a lot of resources required in making sure that we achieve this target. As a country, we tried to put up certain activities in place which are contributing towards the achievement of the biodiversity target 2010,” says Makumba.
He further adds that his department has simplified the United Nations Convention on biodiversity, adding that they have also been implementing a project on the localisation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Makumba also says people should not forget that the biodiversity 2010 target is related to the MDGs.
“We have gone a step further in the localisation of the MDGs in two districts, namely Chibombo and Mazabuka,” he reveals, adding that “we have brought the community on board to make them understand the meaning of MDGs.”
He explains that people have realised that environmental sustainability cuts across all MDGs and that this means without a sustained environment, it is impossible to achieve other MDGs.
“We are saying that biodiversity contributes to the livelihood of people. What this means is that if the environment is sustained, we will then be tackling MDG number one which talks about poverty alleviation,” narrates Makumba.
It is believed that where the environment is degraded, people will not be able to effectively contribute towards the achievement of the number two MDG which talks about universal primary education.
It is said that where the environment cannot provide the necessary services, children will spend time looking for firewood and do other house tasks, leaving less time for school.
“You will find that failure to achieve MDG number seven, which talks about environmental sustainability, will make it impossible for you to achieve MDG number two,” explains Makumba.
The challenge of reversing the degradation of ecosystems while meeting increasing demand for their services calls for significant changes in policies and attitude.
Therefore, Zambians, especially research institutes, agricultural companies and farmers should advocate for farming systems that are profitable, environmentally sound as well as one that can build a cleaner, healthier environment and a safer world. — PALISAH.
For more information,
Write to the Editor
Palisah News Agency
P.O.BOX 33984
Tel: 237445
Lusaka.
Email: palisah@yahoo.co.uk
Labels: AGRICULTURAL SHOW, BIODIVERSITY, CONSERVATION FARMIING, ORGANICS
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NORAD gives GART $25m to implement farming projects
By Kabanda Chulu
Friday February 01, 2008 [03:00]
NORAD has committed US $25 million to the Golden-valley Agriculture Research Trust (GART) for the implementation of conservation farming projects across the country. GART will carry out the projects in conjunction with the Conservation Farming Unit (CFU) for five years and target 120,000 farmers in five provinces.
According to a statement released by the Conservation Farming Unit yesterday, NORAD was funding the entire project that would see small-scale farmers being introduced to new techniques and crop rotation systems.
It stated that there was need to introduce Zambian small scale farmers to methods that would preserve soil fertility through growing of plants that were rich in nitrogen nutrients.
“The five-year project worth US $25 million will end in 2012 and it is funded by Norway and will be implemented by GART and CFU across five provinces targeting 120,000 farmers, whom we intend to introduce to new systems of preserving soil fertility through crop rotation,” it stated. “These farmers will also be encouraged to plant crops together with the faidherbia albida (musangu) trees that are rich in nitrogen nutrients hence there will be no need to apply fertilisers since conservation farming entails one to have soil fertility through use of dead leaves and residues.”
It stated that small-scale farmers would also be encouraged to grow cassava and jatropha plants as live fencing for their crops.
The project would be undertaken in Central, Lusaka, Western, Eastern and Southern provinces.
Labels: CONSERVATION FARMIING, GART, NORAD
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