The sun beats down on Kaluluma Village in Traditional Authority Kaluluma, Kasungu District. At first glance, little seems out of the ordinary. Dusty roads and the rural landscape reflect the daily hardships familiar to many communities.
Yet beneath this quiet setting, a remarkable transformation is taking shape. For farmers whose lives have changed through joining cooperatives, a new story of progress, resilience, and opportunity is beginning to emerge.
As farmers harvest their crops under the scorching sun in Kaluluma Village, they remain steady and hopeful, smiling with relief as the knowledge and skills gained through Community Agribusiness Advisors (CAAs) continue helping them improve production and adapt to climate change.
With the growing number of farmers in need of agricultural advisory services, the few government extension officers alone cannot meet the demand, where one officer currently serves over 3,000 farmers instead of the recommended 700.
But through the coming of CAAs, the burden is being eased, as more farmers are now reached with the right farming knowledge and guidance, helping them harvest not only crops, but also hope for a better future.
One of the farmers, 45-year-old Emily Nyirongo from Chimwemwe Cooperative under Yosefe Group in Senior Chief Kambilanjala, said the advisory services from CAAs helped her start producing manure for her farm.
“Manure has helped us a lot since we started last June. We want to continue because without manure it is difficult to get good yields due to poor soil fertility,’ she said.
Nyirongo added that her household has already produced six bags of manure for use during the 2026/27 farming season to reduce fertilizer costs and improve soil fertility.
Meanwhile, Geoffrey Banda from Kanjazi Cooperative in T/A Kaluluma said the project has changed young people’s perception of farming.
‘”Many youths think farming is only for the elderly, but that is not true. Through the extension advisory services from CAAs and AEDOs, I have gained confidence and started producing more manure in preparation for this farming season,” he said.
Community Agribusiness Advisor, Cicilia Mhone from Kaluluma EPA, said her extension services have helped farmers increase yields even on small pieces of land by following proper farming techniques.
She said farmers are now using modern methods such as double-row soybean planting and applying inoculants to improve production.
“We are using modern techniques when planting crops like soybeans, and this has greatly increased production. Farmers have benefited a lot this season,” she said.
She also encouraged farmers to use hybrid seeds due to changing rainfall patterns caused by climate change.
Agricultural Extension Development Officer for Kaluluma EPA in Kasungu district under the Ministry of Agriculture, Stafford Banda, said the presence of CAAs has positively contributed to farming communities through demonstration plots where different seed varieties are tested, helping farmers learn and adopt suitable crops.
“Through these trials, farmers are now able to choose seed varieties that best suit their soil,” he said.
He added that CAAs have also eased the workload for extension workers, making it easier to reach more farmers with agricultural advisory services.
The Farmers Union of Malawi is implementing the Generating Income for Young Agripreneurs and Farmers for Inclusive Food Systems Transformation in Malawi (GIYA) under the Youth Entrepreneurship for the Future of Food and Agriculture (YEFFA) project implemented by AGRA with support from the Mastercard Foundation.
The program, which started in 2024 and is expected to end in 2027, is being implemented in the Lilongwe and Kasungu ADDs, promoting value chains such as soybeans, groundnuts, and maize. About 89,535 young agripreneurs and 360,000 farmers are expected to benefit from the initiative.
The project aims to empower young Agri-preneurs and smallholder farmers through sustainable and climate-resilient farming, in line with Malawi’s MW2063 vision of using agriculture to drive economic growth.
FUM Programme Manager Derrick Kapolo said the introduction of Community Agribusiness Advisors (CAAs) was meant to bridge the gap caused by the shortage of extension workers.
He said that unlike lead farmers who mainly focus on agronomy, CAAs use an integrated approach by helping farmers access extension services, improved farm inputs, and markets.
“We wanted CAAs to act like entrepreneurs who not only provide advisory services but also connect farmers to private sector players, input, and markets,” said Kopolo.
He added that youths from communities were trained in entrepreneurship and agronomy and linked to seed companies to conduct demonstrations and connect farmers to quality inputs.
According to FUM’s annual survey, the CAA initiative increased farmer outreach for extension and advisory services from 30 percent to 78 percent, while also contributing to a 75 percent increase in productivity and a 40 percent rise in adoption of improved farming practices.
As the sun sets over Kaluluma Village, farmers finish harvesting their fields with smiles on their faces, carrying their produce home and preparing it for the market.
With the impact of the Community Agribusiness Advisors (CAAs), farmers now seem more aware of their next steps as only a few months remain before the start of the new farming season. Armed with the knowledge and skills they have gained, they are better prepared and hopeful for another bumper harvest.
