Category: Agriculture

* This aligns with the government’s growing calls for farmers to practise climate smart agriculture * Which includes planting early maturing crop varieties in our district which is hit with disasters annually By George Mponda, MANA Farmers in Karonga District and the rest of the country, are advised to plant early maturing crop varieties to lessen the impacts of weather unpredictability and climate change-induced flood disasters on their agriculture productivity. Karonga District’s agriculture development crops officer, Stocker Nundwe said…

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* From Harvest Decline to Food Crisis: The Looming Threat of the El Niño-Induced Drought on Food Security in Malawi * 92.8% of surveyed households expect significant harvest reduction across crops, leading to a major decline in food production and jeopardizing food security By Duncan Mlanjira Many experts, including the donor community, have always observed that Malawians over rely on Nsima as their staple food produced from maize flour and a recent survey has nailed it on the head…

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* We have planned to support 600 families in our catchment area, and Nkaya will be involved in small scale irrigation—CARD * We will also provide solar mobile pumps to help with irrigation and communities will also be assisted to rehabilitate shallow wells to make their water points reliable By Mary Makhiringa, MANA Total hectares of maize crop in Balaka for the 2023/2024 agricultural season was estimated at 95,074 but following a 33-day dry spell the district has experienced…

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* Specifically, 749,113 hectares of maize have been affected, representing 44.3% of the national crop area * Other important crops like rice, soya beans, cowpeas and groundnuts have also been affected By Duncan Mlanjira After physical assessment of state of affairs following inadequate rains, floods and prolonged dry spells that have been experienced across the country due to El Niño conditions, President Lazarus Chakwera has declared a State of Disaster in 23 whose crops were severely damaged. In his…

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* Invasive alien species (mulanda malo) are adversely affecting biodiversity — both locally and globally * They are very persistent plant species that invade and threaten quite a range of habitats * As well as, indirectly, the livelihoods of millions of people depending on natural ecosystems for food, commodities and energy security By Duncan Mlanjira Environmental Affairs Department (EAD), in partnership with Lilongwe Wildlife Trust (LWT) and Wildlife & Environmental Society of Malawi (WESM), are on a serious campaign…

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