* Government will continue to work with development partners to invest much on research in line with Malawi’s aspiration of sustainable food sufficient
* Kawale also called on other research stations to also concentrate on researching alternative fertilizers
* So that Malawi should shift from high dependence on chemical to organic fertilizers
By Evance Chisiano, MANA
Minister of Agriculture, Sam Kawale emphasises the critical role agricultural research stations must play in developing new agricultural technologies, saying these innovations should lead to improved crop and livestock varieties — thereby contributing to Malawi’s long-term food and nutrition security.
Kawale made the remarks at Bvumbwe Agricultural Research Station in Thyolo yesterday after touring several sections that included soil fertility & chemistry; pesticides control; plant pathology laboratories and other test labs.
The Minister also toured macadamia, orange-fleshed sweet potato, and Irish potato early-generation seed multiplication projects, that aligns with the government’s efforts to make Malawi a food-sufficient nation.
The focus is on shifting from subsistence farming to commercialisation, which will rely on pest-resistant, high-yield crop varieties and improved livestock breeds.
“Our farmers should continue to have access to high yielding food crops,” Kawale said after a tour of several laboratories where he learnt the need to install digital equipment as opposed to current analogue equipment which mostly fail to operate due to over-usage.
Kawale, therefore, said the government will continue to work with development partners to invest much on research in line with Malawi’s aspiration of sustainable food sufficient.
He thus called on other research stations to also concentrate on researching alternative fertilizers so that Malawi should shift from high dependence on chemical to organic fertilizers.
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“We should be moving away from chemical fertilizers to organics and we want to teach farmers to make organic fertilizers. Chemical fertilisers are expensive and eat at our resources.
“Our 10 research stations should fully be invested in research that should benefit farmers,” he said, citing high yielding maize varieties that can produce many tons per hectare other than a few tons at the expense of household food security.
Dr. Margaret Chiipanthenga
Bvumbwe Research Station Manager, Dr. Margaret Chiipanthenga said lack of laboratory equipment and shortfall of scientific researchers remains one of major challenges at the station.
She, therefore, said there was a need to install high tech research equipment and deployment of adequate personnel in the research laboratories for best tests that should give excellent agricultural solutions.
Bvumbwe Agricultural Research Station is on 287 hectares in Thyolo where a lot of research and a lot of seed multiplication is done.
Kawale was on a tour of a number of research stations such that he was expected to tour Makoka Research Station in Zomba to appreciate its research work.
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