By Mcloyd Chilangiza:
The Ministry of Agriculture has advised farmers to grow climate-resilient crops to get ready for climatic shocks that the country experiences.
This has been said when the International Crop Research Institute for Semi- Arid Tropics (Icrisat) in partnership with the Indian government organised a workshop aimed at promoting the importance of millet ahead of preparing for India- Africa International Millet Conference in Nairobi, Kenya.
Ministry of Agriculture Director of Research Services Grace Kaudzu applauded Icrisat and the Indian government for promoting the government’s policy of encouraging the production of climate-resilient crops.
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“As the Ministry of Agriculture, we are very appreciative of Icrisat especially this time of the year when we are commemorating International Year of Millet, where we are trying to create awareness on the importance of millet,” she said.
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Kaudzu added that the government is committed to promoting crop diversification systems in the country in preparation for climatic shocks.
India High Commissioner to Malawi Shri Gopalakrishnan stressed the need for Malawi to embrace millet production so as to enhance food security.
“Millet has a lot of advantages but the main advantage is that it is a resilient crop, and to countries like Malawi, which often witnesses tropical cyclones and food insecurity, l think millet comes in to tighten the food insecurity challenges,” he said.
He also said that the Indian government has collaborated with African countries to enhance its experience in the technological production of millet.
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On her part, Icrisat Africa Programme Director Rebbie Harawa hailed the preparation meeting, saying that it has provided a platform for stakeholders to deliberate on the status of millet in Africa before the actual commemoration day.
Harawa also stressed the need for Malawians to use improve millet seed to ensure crop diversification as well as improve health conditions of humans considering that it has high nutritive value.
The meeting took place on Thursday in Lilongwe ahead of the India-Africa International Millet Conference to promote World’s Emerging Smart Food on August 30 to 31 2023 in Kenya.
