FARMERS URGED TO ADOPT CONSERVATION AGRIC TECH

By Jessica Mwansa

WE will continue to promote conservation agricultural technologies which are based on soil conservation using minimum tillage, use of organic manures and retention of crop residues in order to increase farmers’ capacity to adapt to climate change impact, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has said.

Speaking to The Scoop, WWF Zambia National Director Nachilala Nkombo said agriculture played a central role in securing livelihoods of the local population and that the majority of smallholder farmers used conventional farming methods for shifting crops.

She said the conservation agriculture technology entailed an increased intensification and permanency of cropping fields of the farming system which resulted in people concentrating on their fields near homesteads and avoiding cultivating in wildlife corridors and other forested habitats which were left for use by wildlife.

 “Due to low soil fertility, fields can only be used for a maximum of three years. Thereafter, forested areas are cleared for new fields and as a result, farmers continue to invade wildlife habitats, leading to human-wildlife conflicts and crop damage.

 ‘’Further, capacity has been built in post-harvest loss management through appropriate storage technologies, and a seed production program for locally-adapted seed to provide access to affordable and improved seeds that are adapted to local conditions and are high yielding,” Ms. Nkombo said.

She said farmers had to adopt farming practices that would not harm nature or negatively affect climate and that one of these farming practices was conservation agriculture.

She added that through conservation agriculture, farmers were able to harvest reasonable yields and results showed that as the number of farmers adopting conservation smart agriculture increased, there had been a reduction in the cultivation and encroachment in wildlife corridors.

 “In order to reduce the risk due to reliance on rain fed agriculture only, WWF Zambia and partners have initiated small scale drip irrigation schemes among three communities within the Silowana complex in Sioma working mainly with women groups. The focus on women for this adaptation initiative is because they are important food producers and providers, although they have limited access to and control of resources.

 “As WWF, we have seen positive outcomes on the practices and lives of the farmer beneficiaries in the targeted communities within the Silowana complex.  The immediate benefits of conservation agriculture over traditional farming is that of increased yields which has encouraged farmers and most farmers are harvesting more than double the usual harvest,” she said.