CAT, LUANAR secure $13,000 research grant to address production challenges faced by smallholder farmers in Malawi

Malawi-The Centre for Agricultural Transformation (CAT) and Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR) have signed a $13,500 research grant to support six undergraduate students in finding quick solutions to production challenges faced by smallholder farmers and selected agribusinesses in Malawi through research on demand.

A statement jointly issued by CAT and LUANAR says the grant will cover one year of research activities by four male and two female students drawn from LUANAR’s Bunda College campus, who were selected through a competitive and rigorous process managed by both the university and CAT.

The grant will allow the students to focus on several specific research areas, such as investigating the genetic stability of a groundnut variety, developing tissue culture protocols for banana propagation, evaluating pest management approaches for soybean, assessing the effect of sunken beds on garlic yield, studying the performance of chia seeds, and evaluating the potential use of mushroom substrate as organic fertilizer, says the statement.

According to the statement, these production challenges were identified late last year through CAT’s visit to its Business Incubation and Commercialization (BIC) partners who are upscaling various technologies and innovations to support smallholder farmers’ adoption across the country.

The research activities will be conducted at the CAT’s Smart Farms located within the precincts of LUANAR’s Bunda and NRC Campuses with regular visits to selected agribusinesses in Lilongwe based on individual production challenges they face while working with smallholder farmers, the statement says, in part.

CAT Executive Director Macleod Nkhoma said, “We are delighted to work with LUANAR towards supporting undergraduate research needs that have an impact on smallholder agricultural production as well as those that can provide solutions to production bottlenecks our agribusiness partners face as they support farmers through various alternative value chains.

“This is a unique opportunity and CAT strongly believes this will further cement the existing partnership between CAT and LUANAR; but more importantly it will generate evidence-based data that will eventually help these farmers enhance their agricultural productivity, increase income and ensure improved livelihoods.”

Nkhoma added that although this is a pilot phase targeting undergraduate students, there is potential for expansion in the near future to include other value chains and target groups who may want to research challenges being faced by the agricultural sector.

Deputy Vice Chancellor of LUANAR Dr Agnes Mwangwela expressed her support for the initiative and said, “We applaud and celebrate this great initiative which will go a long way in building and strengthening our undergraduate students’ capacity to conduct scientific research. The University deeply cherishes a practical partnership with the CAT that is cascading down to our students. Following this initial grant, we look forward to an expanded program that would accommodate more students and staff to conduct demand-driven and cutting edge research for the agriculture industry.”

The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World through Agricultural Transformation Initiative has provided funding for the initiative.