Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale has said Malawi is moving in the right direction towards agriculture sector commercialisation.
According to Kawale, through various initiatives, the government is making progress in efforts to ensure that many farmers in Malawi access modern farming technologies.
Kawale cites the Agricultural Commercialisation Project (Agcom) as one of the major programmes the government is counting on to achieve the aspiration of mechanising and commercialising the sector.
“Mechanisation is happening and is taking place at a quick rate. Our goal is to improve agricultural production in the country from smallholder to commercialisation, and I am satisfied with the progress that the country has made ensuring that many farmers in cooperatives have access to these machines so that they thrive in their operations,” Kawale said.
He reiterated the government’s commitment in making sure that the farmers have access to profitable markets.
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Kawale also said the challenge in Malawi has never been access to profitable markets but “our capacity to satisfy market demands”.
“The biggest incentive to any farmer is a market for his or her produce, whether here in the country or abroad, but the problem has never been the absence of markets because we have markets for maize in South Sudan, pigeon peas in India and sesame in Japan.
“So it is us who have not been able to produce enough and that why we are establishing mega farms to increase production,” Kawale said.
Agcom has been working on establishing what officials say are productive alliances among farmers.
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Recently, Agcom presented tractors to Kasinthula Cane Growers Cooperative in Chikwawa, Umodzi Youth Cooperative and Tafika Cooperative in Blantyre.
Agcom National Coordinator Ted Nakhumwa said the programme has increased production, apart from enhancing agricultural mechanisation in the country.
“What we have noticed is a rise in incomes at both personal and household levels among beneficiary farmers and, as Agcom, we are certain that in three to five years, there will be enormous improvements in the agriculture sector,” Nakhumwa said.
