Khosolo women’s forum in Mzimba is drilling women from traditional authority Khosolo in making organic manure.
In an interview on Tuesday during a training session at Khosolo, the forum’s treasurer Hellen Mwale said they are targeting vulnerable women to gain skills in organic manure production.
She said the initiative will among others, help women to become resilient to climate change shocks. Said Mwale: “We who cannot afford to buy fertilizer to produce their own organic manure from locally available resources.
“We encourage these women to adopt the technology because organic manure has the potential to bring back lost nutrients in the soils, thereby increasing their crop production.”
Mwale said she expects the group to train other women from other areas.
Khosolo agriculture extension development officer Abel Nundwe, who took part in the manure-making process, hailed the initiative, saying it was important to train women on new ways of farming.
“We encourage farmers to adopt the use of organic manure because it is cheap to produce and also improves soil fertility.
“We trained this group and from here, we will make follow-ups to see how they are using the skills for their farming activities,” he said.
Jennipher Chisale, who participated in the training, said she gained knowledge on how to produce manure and hoped that farming will now be cheaper.
“We have been failing to harvest much yield because fertilizer is costly, but with the knowledge we have acquired in organic manure, I am sure our farming produce will increase,” she said.
Due to climate change shocks such as prolonged drought, floods as well as the escalating fertilizer prices, farmers are encouraged to embrace new farming technologies. The training was funded by ActionAid Malawi.
Source: The nation-Elton Mhango-Correspondent-15/08/2024