By Steve Chauluka, contributor:
The Malawi Digital Plant Health Services (MaDiPHS) Project has intensified the development of farmer messages aimed at providing farmers in the country with easy-to-understand information.
The information helps in identifying and managing crop pests, diseases and weeds and facilitates the provision of real-time weather updates to boost crop productivity and improve food security.
Speaking during the Farmer Messages Graphic Review meeting in Dowa District, MaDiPHS National Project Coordinator Jonathan Mkumbira said experts from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services (DCCMS) were reviewing the messages and adding illustrations to ensure they are simple and easy to comprehend.
“Climate change is real and its effects are already being experienced by the farming community. For instance, the occurrence of new pests such as the Fall Armyworm, which affects maize and other crops, and diseases such as Banana Bunchy Top virus, has drastically reduced banana production in the country.
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“It is, therefore, important for farmers to receive the right messages that can assist them in making proper decisions to protect their crops. MaDiPHS, with expert support from the Ministry of Agriculture, has developed farmer messages on pests, diseases and weeds to help farmers decide on the right management options to quickly control such problems and minimise crop loss,” Mkumbira said.
The messages have already been pretested among the Sena, Lhomwe, Yao, Chewa, Tumbuka and Tonga ethnic groups to ensure that the Chichewa language used is clear and easily understood across different communities.
On his part, Bvumbwe Agricultural Research Station Manager Charles Malidadi observed that developing farmer messages accessible on digital platforms would help bridge the gap in the agriculture extension system.
“In our extension system, we have more farmers than extension workers. The ratio is one extension worker to 3,000 farmers. The Malawi Digital Plant Health Service will help reduce this gap because extension workers are not enough. The messages will be transmitted in digital form to ensure that farmers can quickly access them, even in hard-to-reach areas,” Malidadi said.
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The Malawi Digital Plant Health Service Project is funded by Norway through Norad and is led by the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research.
Once fully operational, the MaDiPHS digital platform will be hosted and managed by the Malawi Government through the Ministry of Agriculture. It will support both online and offline access on any type of mobile phone.
