Senior Chief Kalonga from Salima District has asked the government to come up with standard prices for the Cotton crop which is the main crop that the district produces and sells.
The remarks were made in Salima where an organization called Kvuno organized a tour to several cotton farms under the project named Pathways to Prosperity Programme with financial support from Solidaridad from Neverlands.
In his speech, the Chief expressed his concerns that despite failing to find markets that offer good prices for the crop, high prices of cotton seeds have been another challenge that the farmers continue to face thereby leaving them with no choice but to focus on other crops for farming activities.
He added that farmers have been laborers for a long time now considering that they barely benefit from the fruits of their work due to high prices of cotton seeds and low prices on the market.
“I am glad that government officials are present here because I want them to listen very attentively and act on this matter. You owe us an explanation of what crime farmers committed? And why should we continue suffering? You already know our concerns.
“One day people will point fingers at you and start calling you thieves because farmers have suffered for a long time and no official from the Ministry of Agriculture came to hear us out. Please do somethings, it’s never too late,” he pleaded with the officials.
On his part, Deputy Director in the Ministry of Agriculture in the Department of Crop Development, Martin John Kausi, said they are committed to make sure that prices offered on the markets should be reasonable to ensure that farmers benefit from their labor considering that Cotton emerges as a promising candidate, poised to meet both local demands and contribute to export earnings.
He went on to say that challenges such as low production levels, climate change among other things, continue to hinder the potential that the government, in collaboration with different stakeholders, have to address.
Kvuno Hub Manager for Lilongwe, Grace Msiska, said that the program has contributed a lot to many farmers especially in Lilongwe where the project is focusing on more than 500 farmers at Nsalu in the area of Traditional Authority Kabudura.
Solidaridad Senior Donor Relations Manager and Head of Pathway Prosperity Programme, Irene de Bruin, said they are involved in seed multiplication initiatives that will produce close to 400 tonnes of seed that will be available to farmers in Malawi for the next production season and they are glad that farmers are benefiting from the program.
The project has several initiatives and one of them is to award farmers who follow all the farming activities that the program offers. The awards are in form of smart phones, bicycles, solar radio cassets and among others.
The seven-year Pathways to Prosperity Programme (2023-2029) is being financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Netherlands and aligns with Solidaridad’s organizational strategy and is being implemented by Kvuno in the districts of Salima , Lilongwe and Dedza. Cottton ,Tea and Soya Beans are some of the crops that the program focuses on.
