Pigeon peas farmers under the Nandolo Farmers Association of Malawi (NFAM) have lamented low access to finance and the absence of structured markets as challenges affecting production.
In an interview, NFAM Chairperson Susan Chimbayo said pigeon peas production has remained under small-scale farmers and on small pieces of land with minimal commercial orientation.
“There is little coordination between farmers and the authorities to boost production of the crop such that farmers only look at selling the little they produce to satisfy their immediate household needs. If there were enough warehouses and structured markets, it could be easy to convince farmers to produce more with an export orientation.
“There is a special variety that is preferred on the foreign market which we cannot afford as it requires a lot of pest management. It needs proper packaging, money for transportation and payment may take long, which is another setback. Unless the government takes a special interest in pigeon peas, there will be no development. Capital financing for pigeon peas is necessary to boost production,” Chimbayo said.
In a recent interview, Minister of Trade Simplex Chithyola Banda said prospects to increase Malawi’s exports are very high and more export opportunities are unfolding, hence re-negotiating existing memoranda of understanding with the government of India on pigeon peas.
- Advertisement -
“Malawi now has unlimited access for exports of pigeon peas for the next two years to India. It is up to us as to how much forex we can generate from that market. We are also negotiating an MoU with the India government to enhance exports of soya beans,” Chithyola said.
Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale recently indicated that pigeon peas production increased by 6.4 percent due to seed availability and market incentives.
Currently, prices for the crop have increased to K1,200 per kilogramme (kg) representing a 118 percent rise when compared to the government set farmgate price of K550 per kg in March.
