Conservation farming leads the way

Many families in Rafael in eastern Zambia only had enough food to eat one meal a day three years ago. Today they have converted to conservation farming which has improved their livelihood hugely.

By Norma Martinez

21. November 2011

They don’t know much about climate change in Rafael in eastern Zambia. And they are not aware that world leaders are about to meet for the 17^th time to discuss solutions to climate change. But they do know one thing; the rains do not come as they used to do. Today the all important rainy season has reduced from six to three month, which makes it impossible for traditional maize crops to grow. Small scale farmers in Rafael are now dependent on hybrid crops, which grow faster but are more expensive.

“When we were young our parents knew that the rains came around the 26^th October. The whole village would prepare to harvest and it would rain to April. Now we don’t know when the rains will come and we depend on metrologists or Nyimba District Farmers Association to advise us on when we should start planting our maize,” says Edison Sakala from Rafael.

Iron sheets and motorbikes

But despite the negative changes in rainfall patterns, which have big consequence for small scale farmers in Southern Africa, many farmers in Rafael are doing well. This is due to conservation farming, which many farmers in the area have adopted in the last three years.
“We are doing very well,” says Tisiyenji Tembo with a big smile in her face. She is standing in the burning sun in front of a half finished brick house with an iron roof, which is going to replace the old mud house she and her husband live in now.
“This house is been paid for with the money we are earning from conservation farming,” says Mrs. Tembo proudly. “Before we only had food for self consumption, but now we are producing enough to sell and improve our lives,” says Tisiyenji Tembo.

Also her neighbour Elizabeth Daka has experienced a huge improved in her family’s livelihood since converting their fields to conservation farming.

“Before I produced 24 bags of maize a years; which was not enough to feed my family for the entire year. We used to eat one meal a day and by September we will not have more food, so we would work in other people’s field in return for food. Today we are producing around 150 bags. We have maize to eat and to sell. This year I made 7 million kwacha (1400 $),” explains Mrs. Daka. She has bought a motorbike and is making bricks to build a new house from the income she is making.

The thick forest is gone

70 out of 200 farmers in Rafael have converted their farms to conservation farming with the help and training from Nyimba District Farmers Association ( NDFA) which is ActionAid Zambia’s partner in Nyimba valley close to the Mozambican border. Three years ago NDFA embarked on the project which has the goal of improving the livelihoods of the farmers in the area, who where not producing enough food to sustain themselves and to stop deforestation.
“Farmers here cut many trees each season to make new fields, because the fields they use become unfertile after a couple of seasons. But they don’t plant new trees and in the course of years what once was a big thick forest has become this,” explains Albert Chaala from NDFA pointing at a field of grass and weed where only small burned tree trunks remain of what once was a forest. The farmers also cut the trees to make bee hives and charcoal.

NDFA trained the farmers in conservation farming and raised awareness on the importance of conserving the forest and the impacts of climate change on agriculture.
“We trained them how to make basins for planting maize that contain water longer, we showed them how to make their own manure, so they don’t have to depend on fertilizer, which is expensive and not very sustainable. We sensitised them on the importance of increasing crop variety and together with the farmers we have been planting nitrogen fixing trees like acacia which are natural fertilizer. When these methods are applied the farmers can continue using the same fields for many years and they can produce much more from each field,” explains Albert Chaala. With the method of farming the community used before they could cultivate three plants of maize per square meter, now they produce nine in the vey same area.

The results are visible in Rafael after just three years; new brick houses, iron roofs, solar panels, motorbikes, bicycles and a new small shop. And families are getting more than one meal a day.

"The improvements in Rafael are great," Albert says "but we still have a lot work to do. The farmers have not stopped cutting trees. We need to do more work to change their mindset and explain the connection between deforestation and climate change,” explains Albert Chaala.