Empowering farmers: Ireland’s partnership with IITA boosts cassava innovation and market access in Malawi

8 November 2024

The Embassy of Ireland in Malawi has stressed the need for strengthened collaboration to improve seed systems, technology development, market linkages, value addition, and food and nutrition activities in the ongoing phase of the RTC-MARKET Project in Malawi.

The embassy and various project partners were visiting IITA - CGIAR in Malawi on a joint field visit to appreciate cassava activities under the Root and Tuber Crops RTC-MARKET Project.

The team, led by the head of operations, Sarah McCan, was impressed with the positive contribution IITA and partners are making to cassava farmers through the RTC-MARKETS in improving seed systems, technology development, market linkages, value addition, and food and nutrition activities. McCan expressed her satisfaction with the demand-driven interventions demonstrated by IITA, citing their importance in ensuring sustainability.

"It is good to see all the partners working together. Ireland has a long history of supporting agriculture in Africa. We are also an agriculture-based nation. For us, it is important to support technologies and extension work. We have enjoyed partnering with the International Potato Center (CIP) and the government of Malawi, and we would like this to continue. We believe there must be demand for products and that we should attain sustainability at the end of the project," said McCan.

Irish Aid has been providing financial support for root and tuber crops, focusing on delivering productive root and tuber crop technologies and management practices. Under the RTC-Market, Irish Aid is now focusing on markets, aiming to harness market incentives, and working with the private sector to create increased and equitable income opportunities in the RTC sector for farmers and micro, small, and medium-scale enterprises. It aims to contribute to a productive and sustainable agricultural sector in Malawi that generates increased employment and income opportunities and supports food security and healthy, more diverse, and affordable diets for all Malawians.

During the visit to Lilongwe, visitors were shown how IITA and the Department of Agriculture Research Services (DARS) use the Semi-Autotrophic Hydroponics (SAH) laboratory for rapid clean seed multiplication of farmer-preferred cassava varieties. They were drawn to the effectiveness of the SAH technology in producing a high number of clean planting materials within a short period and in a small space.

McCan and the team were updated on the ongoing experiments comparing the performance of plants generated from single-node cuttings versus those from conventional cuttings. Preliminary data suggests that plots with single-node cuttings yielded higher than those with conventional cuttings. The second-round trials, to be harvested in December, will have to confirm the first round before concluding.

IITA and DARS are working towards increasing the nutritional value of cassava by fortifying it with beta-carotene through yellow-or orange-fleshed cassava breeding. The vision is to incorporate the high beta-carotene varieties into school feeding programs and food security interventions in cassava-consuming areas.

Under the commercialization drive, IITA demonstrated how it is working to boost the cassava value chain by supporting processors like Kankhuyu Creations and Perisha Agro and Packaging Enterprise in enhancing their supply chain and exposing them to high-end markets.

Perisha Agro is one of the small-scale organizations working with IITA to help empower farmers in cassava and sweet potato value chains. With over eighty-five farmers around Lilongwe, Perisha cultivates over thirty acres of land with an emphasis on new varieties. Perisha and its farmers plan to venture into winter cropping for root and tuber crops.

In Nkhotakota, over three hundred farmers sell their cassava roots to Kankhuyu Processors. Kankhuyu Processors, owned by Lester Kasiya Maliro, has established itself as a formidable, budding business along the lakeshore districts of Malawi. He prides himself on having the capacity to produce four tons of cassava flour per month. This follows the growing demand for Kondowole (cassava flour), which people are now mixing with scarce maize to cook the staple nsima. Maliro was taken to the National Agriculture fair by IITA, with support from the Government of Ireland-funded RTC-MARKET Project. Since then, his Kankhuyu Creations have seen increased demand for his HQCF.

"We have collaborated with DARS to train farmer clubs, processors, and businesses to increase awareness and utilization of cassava-based foods for households and small and medium enterprises," explained Daniel Manduwa, who is a research associate working with IITA under the RTC-Markets Project.

Sika Gbegbelegbe, IITA Malawi Country Representative, thanked McCan and the team for the visit, which strengthened the partner relationship and highlighted activities to achieve value for money. She expressed optimism that the current partnership with the national program and other partners will continue to grow and that Malawi will also attain and be able to help other countries in need, just like Ireland is doing.

Taking his turn, the station manager for Chitedze Research Station, Dr Lawrent Pungulani, thanked Irish Aid for supporting the government in research and development.

"We do recognize the strong collaboration between the DARS AND CGIAR communities. We are here to solve problems for our common farmers. We need to drive that agenda together to address persistent problems with farmers. The support we get from Ireland is important to the country. You have placed interest in the agriculture sector, particularly in agriculture research. We know that we must justify funding for research, and it's pleasing to note that Ireland is flexible in research. We hope this continues because this is where farming systems start," added Pungulani.

CIP leads the RTC Market project and coordinates the Irish and sweet potato component. The cassava component is led by IITA. DARS co-implements all the research and technology development components. Partners who joined during the joint visit included CIP, Agriculture Commodity Exchange (ACE), Tradeline, DARS, Department of Agriculture Extension Services (DAES), Department of Crop Development (DCD), and the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Contributed by Emmanuel Mwale

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