Government committed to revive Agriculture as Business

By Vincent Gunde

Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Madalitso Kambauwa Wirima MP, says the Tonse Alliance government is committed to revive Agriculture as previously was during the reign of President the late Ngwazi Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda for farmers to benefit for their own sweat.

Kambauwa said it is sad that the coming in of multiparty democracy in Malawi has contributed to the downfall of Agriculture saying Auction Floors and ADMARC are not doing the services as mandated for making farmers to always cry for no benefits in agriculture.

She said vendors came in to take the role which was being provided by ADMARC through liberalization policy, the vendors were not buying but snatching away agricultural commodities resulting into many farmers taking farming as not business.

Speaking at Santhe in Kasungu Thursday, on the interaction and an Agriculture Value Addition project launch with farmers and chiefs, Kambauwa assured the people that Government has laid down good plans to make farmers take farming as a business in its vision 2063 Agenda.

Kambauwa said gone are the days when farmers would be poor saying today, they set prices for their produce and they are free to decide which type of crops to grow saying farmers have to be happy taking farming as a business.

She said Government has changed the fiscal year to start from March to April with a specific objective that at the time farmers are harvesting their produce from gardens, Government has to release funds to ADMARC to buy the produce in time for farmers to have time to prepare for the new growing season.

The Minister disclosed that Government has put a side in the National Budget of 2022-2023 fiscal year a total of MK447.66 billion for Agriculture Commercialization project asking farmers to work hard in the fields saying the future is bright in the farming industry under the leadership of President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera.

She then hailed Dr. Napoleon Dzombe for complementing government efforts towards Agriculture saying the factory which has been built by him with four factories to come, is a well come development not only to the people of Kasungu but all Malawians.

“The factory is not for Dr. Dzombe, it is for the people, and chiefs surrounding this area, l urge you all to care for it to benefit many Malawians,” said Wirima.