Agriculture

Agriculture

• Twelve schools are now successfully growing orphan maize gardens using compost manure and organic fertiliser.  They are also growing soya beans and ground nuts in order to encourage people to diversify their diet.
• The tree nursery programme was very successful with seven schools managing to grow a total of 19,342 seedlings.  Most schools grew enough seedlings to sell some back to Landirani, with those purchased seedlings being used to start or increase the size of woodlots in other schools.  The number of seedlings bought by Landirani was dependent on the success rate of the nursery, with a maximum of 1,000 seedlings bought.  Several schools had an almost 100% success rate and therefore sold the maximum 1,000 seedlings, generating 50,000MKw for school development activities.  Two villages also asked to be included in the programme and were extremely successful, growing a total of 7,000 seedlings:  Landirani purchased 2000 seedlings from them giving them an income of 100,000MKW which they are planning to use to start up a pig farm.  In addition, these villages donated 2,000 seedlings to schools and surrounding villages, and planted a woodlot in their own village.
• Over 60 fuel saving stoves have been constructed in the Lumbadzi area to date, with more planned.  Once these are finished, more stoves will be built in the Lombwa area (TA M’bang’ombe) and in the Chibwata area (TA Mtema).