You can continue in English or go to the Norwegian frontpage.
Lilongwe, Malawi - At the closure of the 2026 National Agroecology Week, one farmer from remote Dowa District, Alena Chibwazi, captured the conference room with a single message: “Agroecology in Malawi will only flourish with consistent, well‑resourced extension services.”
For an entire week, farmers, researchers, academicians, extension workers, and civil society organizations gathered to share knowledge and celebrate agroecological practices. The event climaxed with SustainFest, where local seeds and value‑added products were showcased and sold among farmers and to the public. Yet, amid the diverse voices, Alena’s call stood out.
Twice given the microphone, in a fully packed conference hall, she refused to be swayed by broader debates, academic and research jargons. Asked what she would tell the President of Malawi, she sternly stared at the moderator, adjusted her red polo neck, and repeated firmly: “Farmers need extension services to advance agroecological practices.”
Her clarity resonated. Lemekezani Chilora, Research Analyst at MwAPata Institute, echoed her words: “Without extension services, agroecology cannot define sustainable farming in Malawi. The focus should not just be on technological advancement but the entire agroecological systems.”
Alena’s conviction is rooted in lived experience. Back home, she has transformed her once rocky surroundings into a thriving food forest, mangoes, bananas, granadillas, vegetables all working together in harmony. She recycles bathroom water to irrigate fruit trees, uses manure instead of chemical fertilizers, and mentors nine fellow farmers in her village.
“I’ve realized I can achieve food security without chemicals,” she said. “Extension services would help us scale these practices.”
Her story mirrors that of Rose Mafedwe from Ntchisi, who has successfully established a food forest over two years, using manure from goats and chickens. “Agroecology means protecting soils, biodiversity, and building sustainable livelihoods,” she explained. Mafedwe plans to intensify water harvesting from her iron roofed house to better irrigate her thriving food forest.
The African Climate Foundation underscores their point: Extension services bridge the gap between research and practice, ensuring farming remains sustainable and resilient.
At SustainFest, Joseph Nanthambe an AEDIC from Ntchisi District who accompanied farmers to an agroecology seed and food festival observed: “Farmers have witnessed the value of local seeds. Seeing others benefit motivates them to do better. As extension workers we will intensify our work to benefit farmers better and more.”
Alena left the conference motivated, armed with new ideas on rainwater harvesting and seed diversity. Alena wished policymakers and partners had collaboratively and consistently invested their resources into practical extension services to make agroecology more sustainable.
Agroecology Week’s theme, “Agroecology in Action: Building Resilient Food Systems for Malawi,” was embodied in Alena’s insistence that farmers need not just inspiration, but guidance, through improved extension services.
Commentators noted that agroecology, in this lean season, serves as an anticipatory safeguard for household food security as Malawi braces for a Super El Niño.
The Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC)-led Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), projects that 2.6 million people will face acute hunger during the 2026/27 lean season (October 2026 to March 2027). The reports further say food insecurity could worsen in the following consumption year, potentially affecting more than 5 million people due to the lingering impacts of the Super El Niño.
NCA-DCA Malawi Joint Country Programme, with support from DANIDA, finances agroecological practices implemented by civil society organizations such as CADECOM mostly targeting women for improved food, nutrition and income at household level.
Lilongwe, Malawi - At the closure of the 2026 National Agroecology Week, one farmer from remote Dowa District, Alena Chibwazi, captured the conference room with a single message: “Agroecology in Malawi will…
At the 2026 NCA-DCA Innovation Fund Pitching Event in Lilongwe in August, six finalists, from universities to rural communities, waited in silence as judges prepared to announce which bold ideas would receive…
This superstitious belief must end, and attackers must face justice, for one day we will realize we killed innocent people out of ignorance, writes Francis Botha.