By Freeman Mwenge
Ministry of Agriculture in Chisamba district in Central province says extension service workers in the district are prepared to play their role as change agents to help farmers transition to modern methods of agriculture that will enable them to handle the challenges of climate change.
Chisamba District Agricultural Coordinator Belvin Muntanga observed that some small scale farmers were still using outdated methods of farming even in the face of changing weather patterns brought on by climate change hence the need for immediate change.
Mr. Muntanga made this observation at a field day organised by Cortiva Agriscience in Nalufwi Camp of Chisamba District recently.
He said the Ministry of Agriculture extension service workers in the district were well positioned as change agents to assist farmers transition from outdated methods of farming to modern technologies in order to increase crop yields.
“We also want to appreciate the work of the private sector for the role you are playing in increasing knowledge among our small scale farmers here in Chisamba and for always developing seed varieties suited to the changing climate. We value your work as cooperating partners to ensure our farmers can cope with climate change,” Mr Muntanga said.
He further urged farmers to seek professional advice from extension officers in the ministry if they were to increase productivity per hectare on their farms.
And Chisamba District Extension Methodologist Lena Mukokili told farmers at the same event to improve management of their crop in order to get higher yields per hectare.
She said it was more desirable to reduce the size of planted hectarage for better management than to plant bigger fields which were poorly managed due to their size.
“If a small field is what you can manage very well then plant a small field. What is the point of cultivating a big field which you can’t manage well only because you want your neighbor to see that you a big farmer? So plant a field you can manage very well. It is better to have a small field that gives 10 tonnes per hectare than a big field which gives you two tonnes per hectare,” Ms Mukokili said.
Cortiva Agriscience’s Wilbroad Moonga speaks to farmers during the recent field day he in Nalufwi Camp
Meanwhile, Corteva Agriscience Field Officer Wilbroad Moonga urged farmers, during the demonstration, to stay abreast of latest scientific advancements that were capable of increasing their yields.
He said the type of farming methods small scale farmers were using made a difference between a good yield or a bad one hence the need to adopt better farming practices to increase productivity on their farms.
“For good yields it also depends on the type farming you are using. Some are still using conventional farming as opposed to conservation farming,” he said.
A small scale farmers Cornwell Hachipola appealed to the Ministry of Agriculture to continue building capacity among the farmers.
Mr. Hachipola said farmers in his area were willing to embrace new technologies of farming but that there was need for capacity building.
“We don’t know a lot about record keeping on our farms. Most farmers are moving to vegetable production under irrigation but they need a lot of help from the ministry,” he said.
The field day was only the first to be held in Chisamba District due to the widespread none performance of crops in the 2023/2024 farming season.
Authored by the Agricultural Information Officer for the National Agricultural Information Services
One Comment
Great write up