* Covering 256 hectares farmers are expected to cultivate more than three times a year
* Constructed under the Programme for Rural Irrigation Development (PRIDE) and funded by Malawi Government and IFAD
* Joins other schemes constructed in Chitipa, Phalombe, Machinga and others being built in Dowa, Nkhata Bay and Rumphi
Maravi Express
The Mlooka solar powered irrigation scheme in Zomba District is one of the iconic projects that the government is undertaking in revitalising the country’s agriculture sector through the agriculture, tourism & mining (ATM) strategy.
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Benefiting over 1,000 farmers in Zomba Chingale covering 256 hectares, the scheme taps water from the Shire River — constructed under the Programme for Rural Irrigation Development (PRIDE), funded by the Malawi Government and the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD).
The project is to build the resilience of rural farmers, who are expected to cultivate more than three times a year and Mlooka joins five schemes, Mafinga and Marko in Chitipa, Matoponi in Zomba, Wowo in Phalombe and Lingoni in Machinga and others being built in Mzenga in Nkhata Bay and Chipofya in Rumphi and Dowa-Dambo.
Construction of Dowa-Dambo which will have five dams with over 30 submersible pumps and to provide water to 453 hectares of farmland, was launched some three weeks ago by Minister of Agriculture, Sam Kawale.
He pledged that government is injecting substantial investment in irrigation as means to counter food shortages in the country, saying the recent erratic rain patterns, droughts — which resulted into a state of disaster in many districts — was a wakeup call that the country could no longer depend on rain fed agriculture for food security.
“Irrigation is very important to us as a nation,” he said. “It will help our farmers plant and harvest more than once, depending on the crop under cultivation. It will provide socio economic endeavors, enough and nutritious food critical for a healthy population that can partake in the development of the country.”
Kawale added that Ministry of Agriculture was committed to achieving the country’s quest for sustainable food security as the project will not only contribute towards MW2063 national vision but answer the request from Malawians to help them grow more food.
IFAD Country Director, Bernedette Mukonyora said her organization was supporting government to have adequate funding to actualize its plans, programsme, policies and priorities in the agriculture sector.
She said with irrigation farming and infrastructure development being a core pillar under MW2063, Malawi like other countries was facing challenges due to climate change, making it difficult to attain food security.
“So we are funding this program to enable government support the food security and production agenda of this country. Irrigation allows you to produce more than once, which means continuous cropping.
“This project will help in supporting household production in Dowa, it will promote diversification because a community can cultivate different crops within the year, and it supports the agriculture commercialisation agenda,” she said.—Reporting from Dowa by Sylvester Kumwenda, MANA
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