In her small field in Govati Village, Traditional Authority Phalula in rural Ntcheu, Grace Semu is quietly fighting back against an unpredictable climate and soaring farming costs, turning to agroecology and locally available materials to keep her crops alive, restore her soil, and protect her land for the future.
For years, changes in climate have meant shrinking harvests, rising production costs that many smallholder farmers can no longer afford. Farming inputs have become expensive, while unpredictable weather has made it harder for families to rely on farming for food and income, leaving many rural households increasingly vulnerable.
Against this backdrop, Semu turned to agroecology, using composted manure, local seed varieties and tree planting to trestore her soils and reduce costs. For her, the benefits have been clear: lower farming expenses, healthier soils, and a more resilient harvest, all while caring for the environment and preserving traditional farming practices that have sustained her community for generations.
“Agroecology is very beneficial for us living in rural areas,” she said. “We are using local materials such as manure which we used to waste, and we are now planting local seeds that our parents used. Farming has become cheaper, and at the same time we are caring for our environment.”
Semu is now urging fellow farmers to adopt the approach, saying for her, agroecology is not just a policy idea but a daily solution, as it is affordable, locally grounded and helps communities protect both their livelihoods and the environment in the face of climate change.
Her experience was shared during a recent stakeholder engagement meeting on the integration of agroecology into national climate change policies and plans, held in Salima, which brought together farmers, donors, civil society organisations and climate actors to reflect on how agriculture can better respond to climate shocks.
In an interview after the meeting, Noghenji Bilima, Country Coordinator for the Participatory Ecological Land Use Management (PELUM) Association, emphasized on the need to promote agroecology as both an adaptation and mitigation measure.
“We have seen that agroecology as a holistic approach, has been coming out of the climate discussions, climate decisions, but it’s not really coming out precisely and being supported as agroecology approach,” Bilima said.
Bilima warned that climate change is already undermining Malawi’s production systems. She pointed to erratic rainfall, declining yields and increasing outbreaks of pests and diseases that farmers struggle to control.
“Our weather has changed so much that the rain is no longer productive,” she said. “If we continue destroying the environment and fail to use measures that protect it, then I don’t think we are ever going to reduce that 1.5 degrees Celsius increase in our temperatures.”
The Salima meeting, organized by CISONECC, with support from Irish Aid through Trócaire, focused on sensitization and awareness, giving farmers, donors and other stakeholders space to share practical experiences in sustainable agriculture and climate mitigation.
