President Chakwera will, on this coming Friday, 20th October 2023, launch one of his flagship schemes, the Agriculture Input Program (AIP).
According to Government projections, a total of 149,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer will be needed to implement the project this year. The Government allocated a total of MK109.817 billion for implementation of the AIP. Fertilizer purchase has a lion’s share of MK102 billion followed by seed purchase which has a total budget of MK6.5 billion. MK585 million will go towards purchase of goats which are part of the AIP program under animal farming initiative and MK67 million will go towards operational expenses in implementing the program.
From the highlighted budget, the Malawi Government will procure a total of 122,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer. About 16,500 metric tonnes is already at the SFRRM warehouses in Lilongwe, Mzuzu, and Blantyre. About 6,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer is an expected donation from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) while 5,200 metric tonnes will come from Japan.
The Government, through Crisis Recovery Initiative received sprouting from President Chakwera’s innovative campaign of Tigwirane Manja, has receive support from IFAD amounting to USD 5.03 million for the purchase of fertilizers to assist the Government in achieving food security at household and national levels.
The development has defied prophets of doom who declared with all manner of unrestrained fantasy that the AIP would not be implemented in 2023. Most, if not all, of such ‘prophets’ are opposition-orientated individuals whose ultimate desire and wish was for the Government not to implement this program. They cited the current short-supply of forex as the main factor that would frustrate the program.
AIP is one of President Chakwera’s flagship projects whose success entail relative food security in the country. With food security, Malawi escape a devastating disaster of hyperinflation and widespread discontent against the political leadership.
By making it a flagship project and delivering on the same, Chakwera has been winning the hearts of many targeted poor farmers who benefit from the initiative. And this category of farmers and consequential beneficiaries constitute a significant population, large enough to impact on the country’s food security status.
The opposition, which many commentators have said has no trace of patriotism whatsoever, does not get excited with the implementation of the program. In fact, public comments offered by some of these opposition politicians suggest that the implementation of the program bothers them. Theirs is a wish for the country to have endless problems, including hunger, so that they can lie to the population that they would fix such problems once voted into power. Apart from such lies, it appears they have nothing to offer to warrant a popular vote from the masses.
As if to deliberately punch them in the lower end of the stomach, Minister of Agriculture Sam Dalitso Kawale in conjunction with Minister of Information and Digitalization Moses Kunkuyu have, this morning, conducted a joint press briefing where they informed the nation that the AIP cargo is ready for selling to farmers.
The two Government officials held their event at the Smallholder Farmers Fertilizer Revolving Fund of Malawi (SFFRM) headquarters in Lilongwe. Part of the consignment could be seen in the background as if deliberately chosen to let the brutal fact dismiss any doubts and falsehood that would aim to suggest to the contrary.
Kawale said the Government has identified 378 selling points where farmers will be buying the fertilizer at K15, 000 per bag. The Minister said they will use personal identification cards for farming families to buy the fertilizer. A total of 1.5 million farming families, according to the briefing, will benefit the program. A total of 291,000 other people who will not benefit from the targeted AIP program will, according to the Government, benefit through cash transfer while 435,000 other people will benefit through climate smart project.
In his turn, the Minister of Information, Moses Kunkuyu, appealed to the media to report responsibly for the love of this country.
IN SUMMARY THE AIP PROGRAM IS AS PER PRESS BRIEFING CONVENED BY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS TODAY
• MK109.817 billion has been allocated for the implementation of AIP.
• 1,500,000 households will benefit from AIP. 1,490,000 households will access fertilizers and seeds, 9,750 will access female goats.
• farmer contributions will be MK15,000.00 per bag of fertilizer, MK15,000.00 per one female goat, and the Government will contribute MK3,500.00 per 5kg pack.
• households with land sizes of between 0.4 hectares and 2.5 hectares have been considered for this program.
𝐀𝐈𝐏 𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬
Over 1,000,000 people left out of AIP will be taken care of as follows:
291,000 households under the Social Cash Transfer government
435,000 households under the Climate Smart Public Works Program
75,000 under AGCOM 1 (K95bn)
225,000 and above under AGCOM 2 (K265bn)
More farmers under Mega Farm/Anchor Farm,
Apart from the 2,500,000 beneficiaries mentioned above, development partners in the agriculture sector will assist more farmers with Programs valued at over K400bn, taking care of over a million more farmers in their programs.
𝐎𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐫
• The total fertilizer required for the program is 149,025MT of
• 122,000 MT is being procured through this budget,
• 16,300MT carryover stocks
• 6,000MT (IFAD) under the Crisis Recovery Initiative and
• 5,200MT being procured from a Japanese grant.
• Total fertilizers in the country held by the 13 contracted suppliers is at 108,441.45 metric tons, about 73% of our requirements.
• 12 seed suppliers have been contracted in AIP.
𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
• We started on Friday dispatching the first 16,385 metric tons of fertilizers
• Started with hard-to-reach areas.
𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬
• 55 transporters, without limitation on the number of trucks per transporter, have been contracted to ferry AIP inputs to various places across the country.
• No MP’s will be allowed to transport fertilizer
𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐦 𝐈𝐧𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
• SFFRFM, ADMARC, and community structures will be selling fertilizer.
• In total 378 hub shops have been identified.
• these shops will act as hub or nucleus markets to mobile van sales within the constituency.
𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬
• accessing the inputs has been designed to respect the constituency boundaries, which will be used in the upcoming General Elections.
𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐤𝐬
• SFFRFM has recruited at least two sales clerks per market so that mobile markets are easily served without closing the main market as it was last season.
𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬
• each market will have at least two phones
• 781 phones have been procured.
• 140 additional phones will be procured.
𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤
• network challenges were sorted out last season
• We have incorporated the GSM platform which is going to allow the retailers to make transactions even though there is no internet connection as long as they are able to make a call.
𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞
• no beneficiary will be allowed to pay for fertilizer in advance.
• you pay, you collect immediately.
𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬
• MBS and the Department of Agriculture Research Services will be monitoring quality of fertilizer and seeds constantly
𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
• FUM, ACB, Police, NIS, Programme Managers, District Commissioners and Civil Society Organisations are also expected to monitor and give feedback on some occurrences that need Government’s attention.
𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑-𝟐𝟒 𝐀𝐈𝐏
• The President will launch on 20th October, 2023 at Kavidebwere F.P. School grounds, T.A. Kaluluma, Kasungu North Constituency
