Kawale Pushes for Shift from Subsidies to Commercial Farming

Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale has urged farmers to embrace commercial farming and mechanization to boost crop production in Malawi.

Speaking during the launch of the National Economic Empowerment Fund (Neef) Farm Inputs Loan Programme for the Southern Region in Nsanje and Chikwawa, Kawale emphasized that the government is shifting its focus from subsidies under the Affordable Inputs Programme (AIP) to empowering farmers for sustainable food security.

“For a long time, we have been investing in smallholder farmers by giving them two bags of fertilizer, which is insufficient to feed the whole nation. That is why we are moving from subsidy programmes to commercial farming,” Kawale said.

The government has allocated about K900 billion to the programme to support this transition. Neef CEO Humphrey Mdyetseni reported that the initiative has so far reached 36,000 of the 300,000 targeted farmers nationwide.

The programme aims to provide adequate inputs to farmers, enhancing both household and national food security.

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