Sustainable Agriculture Production Programme (SAPP II) National Coordinator Rex Baluwa says he is satisfied with how beneficiaries of subsidised farm inputs have utilized them and is confident this will lead to improved food security at household level.
Under SAPPII initiative, the Response to Emergencies and Disasters (RED) component supported Government’s Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) for the 2025-2026 growing season in Balaka, Lilongwe, Dowa and Mzimba districts.
Sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the programme’s objective is to promote commercialization of smallholder farmers and improve agriculture productivity.
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It has assisted 2000 households through inputs with 2.2 metric tonnes of fertilisers; 1.1 metric tonnes of Urea and 1.1 metric tonnes of NPK and another 22000 households with a 5 kilogramme bag of improved pack of maize seeds.
Baluwa made the remarks during a visit organised to appreciate how farmers have benefitted from the inputs at Malembo in Nyang’amire Expansion Planning Area (EPA). The National Coordinator said the initiative is aimed at complementing government’s efforts of ensuring farmers’ access to improved inputs for improved agricultural productivity.
“I’m happy that this community happens to be one of the communities that benefitted from this programme and looking at the way they have made use of the fertilisers and the maize seed that they bought through this programme, I’m really happy because if we’re talking about improving productivity, we also have to make sure that we’re making access to improved inputs possible.
“One way of making available these inputs to the farmers was through the support that we did complementing the government’s project of Farm Inputs Subsidy Programme. So as a Programme we’re happy with the support that we have done; we are happy with the way farmers have made use of those inputs and our expectation is that by the end of the day, the farmers will have at least bumper yields which will contribute to the household food security as well as food nutrition security and improved incomes”
Senior Group Village Headman Kasuni in Traditional Authority Nsinde in Bua Section hailed the SAPP II programme which boosted their farming activities through modern extension services.
He said from two hectares of land where he is growing crops, he expects to have a bumper harvest of about 200 bags of maize
“Previously on the same land before the support from SAPP II came, we used to experience soil erosion and water from the mountain which saw our crops being washed away hence used to harvest little. But the coming in of SAPP has changed things and we expect a bumper yield this time around.
“We are now approaching farming as business and as such some of the maize will be for consumption while the rest will be sold to enable me to pay for my children’s education and we are also being told on other ways of making organic fertilizer as the product is now very expensive”.
As a traditional leader he emphasized on the need for him to lead the way in agricultural activities.
Besides redeeming fertilisers at a subsidized fee of K10, 000 per 50 kilogramme bag, famers in the area are also harvesting water and involved in land conservation programmes.
Targeting 80,000 Small Holder Farming Households, the main objective of SAPPII is to contribute towards wealth creation and improve food and nutrition security among the rural population of Malawi.
Its development goal is to commercialise agriculture production and enhance the resilience and productivity of smallholder farming systems of rural men, women and youth in selected districts of Malawi by 2030.