20101015
africanews

Farmers across Africa have been urged to take keen interest in conservation farming if they are to ensure long-term food security on the continent.

Africa has the largest number of people suffering from hunger and aid urgencies have been trying to advise farmers to consider adopting farming practices that are less labour intense but increases yields.

A team of Zambian farming experts have called on African small, medium and large scale farmers to start practicing conservation farming or agriculture because it has higher benefits compared to conventional farming.

Yvonne Nakachinda, regional head of Conservation Farming Unit (CFU) in Central Zambia has told Africa News in Chisamba that conservation farming is ideal for any scale of farmers.

Nakachinda has asked for more African farmers to start practicing conservation farming because it increases soil fertility, increases yields and ensure long term food security.

“The benefits of Conservation Farming are very many. With Conservation Farming, the yields are higher, food security is guaranteed, there is less labour involved and farming inputs are not demanding....unlike conventional farming,” said Nakachinda.

According to United Nations food agencies, WFP and FAO, food demand is likely to outstrip production by 2012 in Africa if poor weather patterns and climatic conditions influenced by climate change and global warming continue to persist within the coming years.

CFU field officer, Victor Mwale also emphasized the need for farmers across African to start investing in conservation agriculture owing to falling food production as a result of climate change and soil over-use.

Mwale told a team of trainee agriculture and science journalists from several southern African states participating in a week-long training programme organised by UK’s Wren Media that conservation farming should be replicated in Africa.

He explained to Africa News that conservation agriculture is being practiced at a large scale level in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Kenya, Mali, Benin and Burkina Faso, and that more farmers around African must consider getting into it.