I live in Malawi, where 80% of the population lives in rural areas and depend on agriculture for survival. So agriculture is our back bone.
Fortunately, I also graduated from the best agricultural college the country has to offer… Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources. It has produced the best research and technology in agriculture but our farmers are still using back breaking hoes on their farms and still growing low yielding varieties.
It comes as no surprise that hunger and food insecurity are no longer a visitor here, they have settled down and made themselves at home.
The question now is “why are the farmers not adopting these technologies and innovations?” One would expect them to be queuing to get these technologies, after all they make farming easier, more efficient and effective right?
But the trend has been rather the opposite, these technologies are being forced down the farmer’s throat, and are still not being adopted. Others are paying the farmers to adopt these technologies, still nothing….. Something must be done, and soon.
It is time to start focusing how the research that has been collecting dust in the offices can best be used by the farmers. Everyone should take part in ensuring that impact should start being seen through bumper harvests and food security. There has to be mass adoption of the technologies that have been developed through years and years of toiling with research.
No one should be left behind in this effort.
The government, universities, NGOs, extension workers and farmers all have a role to play.
This blog post is part of the GCARD3 Youth blogpost applications. The content, structure and grammar is at the discretion of the author only.