Items filtered by date: May 2025

By Salome Gangire

Neno, November 28, Mana: Farmers in Neno District have expressed gratitude to government for the Affordable Inputs Program (AIP), highlighting its positive impact on agricultural productivity and food security.

The 2024/25 AIP launched by President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera on October 14, 2024 at Dzundu Primary School Ground, in Traditional Authority Simon in Neno district.

Speaking in an interview Thursday, one of the beneficiary from Nkhwewa Village, Sub-Traditional Authority Chikalema, Patricia Frank said the timely provision of fertilizers has brought hope to many households.

"This program has lifted a heavy burden off our shoulders. Fertilizer prices on the market are too high for many of us, but with AIP, we can now farm confidently. I am certain we will harvest enough food for our families and even have surplus to sell," said Frank.

She said she has already applied the fertilizer in her field as she bought on 19th October, 2024 before the onset of the rains.

Echoing similar sentiments, Maria Steven from Tsabola Village, also under Sub-Traditional Authority Chikalema, commended the government for ensuring equitable access to inputs.

"This program has come as a blessing. Farming is our livelihood, and with affordable fertilizers, we can improve our yields.

 "We are grateful to the government for considering the struggles of smallholder farmers like us," Steven said.

According to Neno District AIP Coordinator Taibu Nathaniel, a total of 7,378 farmers are benefitting from the program this year.

 He revealed that currently 3,146 farmers have accessed NPK fertilizer, while 2,846 have received Urea.

"The distribution process is ongoing, and we are working tirelessly to ensure that all beneficiary farmers receive their inputs in time for the planting season. This program is a game-changer for small-scale farmers in Neno," Nathaniel said.

The Affordable Inputs Program, is a flagship initiative aimed to boost food security and alleviate poverty by providing subsidized fertilizers and seeds to smallholder farmers.

Under the program, farmers contribute K15,000 for a bag of 50 kg of fertilizer significantly reducing the cost of production.

Since its inception, AIP has transformed the agricultural sector in Malawi, empowering millions of farmers and enhancing the country’s food production capacity. The program also aligns with Malawi 2063, a long-term development blueprint that envisions an inclusive and self-reliant nation.

By Manasse Nyirenda

Rumphi, November 28, Mana: Affordable Input Programme (AIP) beneficiaries in Rumphi have hailed the programme for enhancing food security in their households.

In an interview on Wednesday one of the beneficiaries, Evelyn Nyirongo from Kavuli Village in Senior Chief Mwahenga said she is happy that she has bought a bag of NPK and is looking forward to harvesting enough food for her family of nine.

"I have benefited for the first time and I am really grateful that I have bought my first of the two bags of NPK and Urea at K15000.  I have a big family which consumes an entire bag of maize in just under three weeks. That's not easy for a poor family like ours. 

"This programme is very empowering for the poor who cannot afford to buy fertilizers from their own pockets. Now we will be able grow enough maize for our family," said Nyirongo.

Another beneficiary, Aaron Nyirongo from Chanda Village in Senior Chief Mwahenga says he is just waiting for his turn to buy since his area has received the inputs.

He added in the 2023/24 farming season he also benefited from the programme and harvested 17 bags of maize and has enough to take his family of four to the next harvest season.

On his part, Traditional Authority Kachulu said AIP beneficiaries in his area are accessing fertilizers without challenges.

He also warned his people not to sale the farm inputs in order for them to harvest enough food for their families.

AIP Coordinator for Rumphi, Victoria Munthali says as of Monday, 25 November beneficiaries in the district have redeemed 57 percent of fertilizers and of that fertilizer there is at least 14 percent of Urea.

About 18,000 people  will benefit from the programme in Rumphi in 2024/2025 farming season.

 By Alinafe kapatamoyo

Lilongwe, November 28, Mana: Theatre for a Change has launched sensitization and psychosocial support groups at Maula and Kachere prisons as part of a three-year project focused on enhancing prisoners' health, particularly in terms of mental health.

The initiative is funded by the European Union (EU) and aims to address the significant challenges faced by prisoners.

Social and Protection Manager for Theatre for a Change, Thandiwe Mbene, highlighted the importance of collaboration with Malawi Prison Services to improve inmates' living conditions, focusing particularly on mental health and HIV management.

She emphasized the organization’s focus on new prisoners, who often experience stress and lose hope upon arrival, which can lead to the abandonment of crucial medical treatments like ARVs.

“We are aiming to provide mental health support to help these individuals regain hope and manage their well-being in a prison environment,” said Mbene.

Speaking on behalf of the Officer in Charge for Maula Prison, Inspector Edward Msowoya, who is also a Clinical Officer at the Prison Clinic, expressed appreciation for the programme, noting its potential to help inmates, especially those who have been in prison for a short time to cope with mental health challenges.

He stressed that many prisoners view detention as the end of their lives, and the new initiative would help change that mindset by providing better mental health support.

“We are very happy because of this initiative considering that in prisons we face a lot of challenges with issues of mental health, so the coming of this programme will help to improve the living standards of inmates mostly those that have just spent a few months in prison and also even those that have saved long here in prison but they were lacking this access of knowing how to overcome issues that affect their well-being in terms of mental health,” said Msowoya.

During the event, Theatre for a Change also presented certificates to inmates who had excelled in training sessions on mental health and psychological first aid.

One of the inmates, Robert Moses, a peer educator, thanked Theatre for a Change for the valuable training, stating that it has empowered them to better understand and address mental health issues within the prison community.

“We appreciate the good work that this organisation is doing for us because such training has helped us a lot in terms of knowing how issues of mental health can be handled and we will be able to help our friends who are facing such kind of challenges,” said Moses.

The programme is seen as a vital collaborative effort between Theatre for a Change and Malawi Prison Services,

By Charles Nkhoma

Lilongwe, November 28, Mana: Deputy Minister of Local Government, Unity and Culture Owen Chomanika, has announced that his ministry, in collaboration with the Malawi National Commission for UNESCO, will host the 2024 National Conference for the Creative and Heritage Industries.

The event is scheduled to take place from December 3^rd to 4^th, 2024, at Crossroads Hotel in Lilongwe.

Speaking during a press conference held at the Department of Unity in Lilongwe on Thursday, Chomanika emphasized the significance of the conference as part of a broader initiative aimed at strengthening institutional capacities for implementing the Malawi National Cultural Policy.

He said the initiative aligns with the UNESCO 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.

‘The conference, themed ‘Empowering Malawi’s Creative and Heritage Industries for Sustainable Development in the arts and Heritage sectors is in line with the provisions of the enacted National Arts and Heritage Act, 2024.

“The main objective is to foster discussions on policy issues and research that are critical to the growth and sustainability of the sectors,” he added.

In an interview, Acting Deputy Executive Secretary for the Malawi National Commission for UNESCO, David Mulera, underscored the importance of the event.

‘Our interest is to support the government and stakeholders in articulating strategies for implementing the UNESCO 2005 Convention on the Promotion of Cultural Diversity.

“The conference will cover several key topics, including the establishment of an arts and heritage promotion fund. Discussions will also focus on the renewal of the national cultural policy,’ he said.

The event aims to unite policymakers, industry players, and cultural advocates to advance the creative and heritage sectors as catalysts for sustainable development in Malawi.

By Andrew Phiri

Balaka, November 28, Mana: Business operators in Balaka District Thursday hailed the Digital Financial Services (DFS) awareness campaign for promoting the use of electronic payments (e-payment) when conducting trade.

Implemented by the Ministry of Finance in partnership with the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) and AC Consulting, DFS seeks to raise knowledge among the people especially rural masses on the benefits of using electronic transactions via mobile phones, banks, and other modern platforms.

A shop owner at Phalula Trading Center, Fanny John said electronic transactions are more secure and fast because there is no involvement of cash when trading.

"Through Airtel Money and TNM Mpamba, we make more sales because our customers would transact the money anywhere and anytime. Moreover, when we have generated more cash during the day, we usually send it to the phone for security purposes," she said.

An agent of Airtel Money and TNM Mpamba, Innocent Mulanje from Kwitanda area said he was well aware of e-payment and urged others to embrace it citing that the world is going digital.

He said: "We have been encouraged by seeing you coming here to create more awareness on the use of electronic transactions"

However, Mulanje cited challenges of electronic transactions such as intermittent networks and fraudsters hence urging the network service providers to update their systems.

AC Consulting Field Supervisor for Balaka DFS, Bernadette Maele commended the people of Balaka for their positive mindset towards the campaign saying the major goal of the programme is for communities to embrace modern transactions.

She therefore emphasized that the campaign will reach the whole district through markets, Village Savings Loans Groups (VSLGs), and other social gatherings.

Phase four of the DFS awareness campaign will run in Balaka for 20 days and the previous phases have been implemented in other districts like Thyolo, Mangochi, Ntcheu, and Mwanza with the target of reaching the whole country.

By Bazilio Chingoli

Ntcheu, November 28, Mana: Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs in collaboration with The Reserve Bank of Malawi, has encouraged people to adopt modern means of cash transfer.

The remarks were made by Digital Financial Services specialist from the Ministry of Finance, Steve Mg'wadila during Digital Financial Services campaign meetings at Sera Trading Center in the area of Traditional Authority Mpando in Ntcheu district.

According to Mg'wadila, it is very important to encourage people in the country to use digital financial tools that are available to them.

He said as people are using hard cash, they should also embrace the use of modern ways of sending money, buying goods and services as part of the country's Vision 2063 agenda.

"We are encouraging people to use soft cash in their transactions and mainly we are concentrating on women, youths, small and medium enterprises, and the vulnerable," he said.

On his part, Janton Katoleza, a business person at Sera Trading Center in the area applauded the Government for the initiative saying it has boosted their trust in their everyday business.

"The campaign is timely as it will clear up some of the misunderstandings towards the use of digital financing tools," he said.

"I have heard on the radios, that using digital money is safer but I was worried about scammers who use the same channels to steal people's money, but now my fear is buried off," he added.

A 20-day campaign which started on 25^th November in Ntcheu district is expected to reach out to all the district mainly trading centerssensitization meetings

By Sylvester Kumwenda

Dowa, November 28, Mana: Some participants under the Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme (CS - EPWP) in Dowa have hailed the programme for transforming their livelihoods.

One of the youthful participants 32-year-old Bless Kashamba from Chinkhwiridambwe under Kaphirisiwa catchment in Traditional Authority (T/A) Nkukula, said since joining the environmental conservation programme in 2022, he has managed to achieve what he could only dream of.

He said he realised his dream of livestock farming whereby he used money he received as capital.

"In 2023, after receiving some of my wages, I invested by buying a goat. As of now, I have four goats and I know the numbers will continue growing, this is something I had dreaming of," he said.

Kashamba added that sometimes proceeds from goat sales valued at K60000 each also help him in taking care of his family, and buying school uniforms for children.

He however said apart from getting money from the project, the project has also helped in land conservation.

When starting the project, he said, most of the environment in the area was degraded saying a lot of trees had been lost due to careless cutting down of the trees.

This he said affected crop production as yields were low because of loss of soil fertility resulting from soil erosion.

“But under the project, we started implementing water conservation activities like constructing infiltration pits at Kaphirisiwa Hill. We are also constructing swales in our fields which help trap rain water.

“As a result, our crops are always healthy even if there are little rains because the soil is usually moist. For example, this past growing season I managed to get 40 bags from the same piece of land which I usually used to get 20 bags from. This has improved our food security," he said.

Thokozire Nkule from Chipeka catchment in T/A Mponela, said issues of heavy rains due to climate change also affected their crop yield.

She said that even applying fertilizer to their fields, high levels of running water and soil erosion resulted in loss of the fertilizer from the soil because most of the land was bare.

But she said this is now a thing of the past due to land conservation activities.

Also, she added saying under the programme, they have also been oriented on village loans and savings (Banki Mkhonde).

“We have also been empowered on how we can run Banki Mkhonde. Under this, we have also been encouraged to start small-scale businesses which some of our members now are engaged in. This has helped in improving our livelihoods," she said.

Director of Planning and Development for Dowa District Council Mercy Mpakule said the programme has benefited a lot of people in the district, whose participation is now pegged at 23000.

"Throughout the five cycles, we have been implementing the project, we have seen people's lives changing, Many people here depend on farming, so when they receive the money, they also invest some of it in their farming activities like buying fertilizer, seed, and other farm-related activities.

"Also, because some of the sub-projects are being implemented in people's farms, it is helping in land conservation. Again, participants are learning how to make organic manure, and all these have improved soil fertility and crop yields," she said.

According to her, during the inception of the programme, 63 hotspots were identified and 191 subprojects were identified to be implemented in the hotspots.

The CS-EPWP is funded by the World Bank and the Multi Donor Trust Fund.

By Albert Mulizakamba

Balaka, November 28, Mana: Action Aid Malawi has disclosed that over 137,000 children across six Traditional Authorities (TAs) in Balaka District have been enrolled in pre-primary schools under the School Readiness Initiative.

The Organization's Programme’s Manager for Early Childhood Development, Anderson Moyo, said this on Tuesday in Balaka when presenting the phase one and two project's progress to District Executive Committee (DEC) members.

He noted that the programme has managed to prepare vulnerable preschool children for education in the district, citing strong collaboration among various parties as a leading factor.

"Phase two has enrolled 137,471 children and we have seen improvements in children’s developmental domains, and also communities are willing to support their children. The construction of Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, particularly in Traditional Authority Nyanyala, has been a great success," he said.

However, Moyo noted that Cyclone Freddy and El Nino posed significant challenges, affecting learner attendance due to hunger in the community.

He added:" The initiative has also recorded 1,640 male and 739 female dropouts with 19,364 male and 19,044 female repeaters"

Balaka District School Health and Nutrition Coordinator, Fabiano Mbendera emphasized the project’s importance in the district saying that the programme remains dedicated to ensuring vulnerable children receive a solid foundation for their educational journey.

"Action Aid School Readiness Initiative has demonstrated its commitment to enhancing education in Balaka, despite facing challenges and a radio programme, “Breach to School,” which was also featured in the programme further supported pre-primary children and parents," he commended.

The initiative was launched in 2020 and phase one started from 2020 to 2022, followed by phase two from 2022 to 2024 and now it is in phase three targeting eight TAs in Balaka.

By Agatha Kadzinje and Milcah Mathias

Blantyre, November 28, Mana: Small scale farmers in Blantyre rural have expressed high expectations in crop harvests in the 2024/2025 farming season as they are currently purchasing fertilisers and maize seeds in various selling points through Affordable Input Programme (AIP).

In an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana) on Wednesday, one of the beneficiaries from Chapasuka Village, Traditional Authority Chigalu in Blantyre, Stenala Juma, said that failure to apply fertilizer had been a challenge among most small scale farmers in his area.

“Most of us are appearing on the beneficiaries list for the first time. We therefore expect that next year we will have enough harvest,” he said.

Juma, who owns 1 hectare of land, expects to have a bumper harvest of maize next year, as in the past year he only harvested one bag of maize. He therefore expressed joy for being among the AIP beneficiaries at Traditional Authority Chigalu.

Some of the criteria for selecting AIP beneficiaries include; being a productive small farmer, owning land from 0.4 to 2.5 hectares, and belonging to a gazetted village, recognized by local authority on top of being a citizen of Malawi.

Speaking in a separate interview, Blantyre District, Chief Agriculture Officer, Lusungu Banda Mtukale said at least 41,860 farmers are expected to benefit from AIP.

She added that under AIP, small scale farmers in Blantyre will buy fertilisers and seeds at subsidised prices, anticipating that the AIP will improve maize production in the district which was also hit by drought.

“Some parts of Blantyre such as Kunthembwe and Chigalu received insufficient rains than other areas in the district.

“We are therefore encouraging farmers to adopt good farming practices according to weather patterns. We are hoping that good rainfall in 2024/25 farming season will bring good results,” Mtukale added.

She advised Agricultural Extension Development workers to provide extension services to farmers so that they should continue with good agricultural practices to ensure good harvest citing early land preparation, good choice of seeds, correct spacing, manure application on top of fertiliser application as some of the best practices.

Mtukale then appealed to AIP beneficiaries never to sell farm inputs for quick money, saying this would be counterproductive and set back in the quest for improved food production

By Joel Phiri

Mzimba, November 28, mana: Scores of subsistence farmers in Mzimba have expressed hope of getting bumper yields from their farms after purchasing cheap fertiliser under the government’s Affordable Input Programme (AIP) in the 2024/2025 farming season.

According to AIP coordinator for Mzimba Agriculture office, Julius Banda most market dealers have started selling   fertiliser under the programme which is targeting 45,541 beneficiaries in the district.

In an interview on Tuesday after purchasing fertiliser, a beneficiary of the programme Temwanani Chirwa, 48 from Kapokolo Village in Traditional Authority M’mbelwa said in the past she cultivated her two acres farmland but due to loss of soil fertility she failed to harvest enough.

‘‘My farmland can no longer give me yields without applying fertiliser. This is the reason I thank government for this programme which is making life easier for us subsistence farmers. This 50 kg bag I have bought at K15,000 will enable me cushion hunger as I am sure I will harvest more than 20 bags’’, said Chirwa.

Chirwa said she struggles to raise money for her household to survive everyday and she could hardly manage to raise over K100, 000 to buy fertiliser for her garden at the current market price.

“Most of us beneficiaries of this AIP are just subsistence farmers so we cultivate for food and because of that we don’t have the financial muscle to buy fertiliser on the market but the coming of this programme has made my life easy to have food through out of the year,” she said.

Another beneficiary of the programme, 71 year old Joys Kamanga from Chimuzalire Chirwa village in Traditional Authority Kampingo Sibande says this is the third time to be among AIP beneficiaries. He commended government saying it has come as a saviour since in the past they could not buy even one bag of fertilizer but currently they are buying two bags which is a great improvement.

Kamanga further says that he is able to provide for his family and that he is able to pay school fees for his family from the farming.

“Since I started benefiting from the program a lot of things have changed in my life as I am able to buy two bags of fertilizers at a low price,” he said.

Martin Jinkho from Yelemiah Mawaso village, in Traditional Authority M’mbelwa said they have not yet started planting and the fertiliser sales have not delayed.

“Some people were panicking that government was delaying in starting selling the fertiliser but I can assure you that this is just the right time as planting rains are yet to start,” said Njikho.

In a separate interview, Traditional Authority Mzukuzuku has also commanded government for rolling out the sales saying people in his communities’ bank on the programme.

‘‘This programme is doing wonders in enabling farmers to harvest without which most people would go hungry. I therefore commend government for this AIP and I only urge government to consider increasing number of beneficiaries next season,” said T/A Mzukuzuku.

Group village headman Amon Moyo says since AIP program was introduced a lot of people have benefited in his area and he further says that 160 people are going to benefit from AIP program this year.

“When the communities have got enough food it becomes easier for communities to take part in even self-projects. Hunger drives away hard working spirit. But people who have food are easy to manage. So as a chief I applaud government for making people buy fertiliser at cheaper price of K15, 000,” said Moyo.

According to the AIP coordinator Banda, they have since opened 32 selling points including mobile markets to ensure farmers have easy access to markets.

‘‘These 32 fertiliser selling points are up from 18 points we had last year. We have scaled up the selling points to ease challenges that some beneficiaries were facing to buy the fertiliser. Also, the mobile markets we have, we believe will ensure farmers buy farmers closer to where they reside,” said Banda.