Dowa District Council has bought 11 motorcycles for its agriculture extension development officers.
Speaking on Wednesday during the handover at the council’s agriculture offices in Mponela, Ministry of Agriculture deputy director of agriculture extension services Kenneth Chaula expressed excitement with the initiative.
“Our extension workers experience a number of challenges, including failing to visit farmers’ households. This problem is over because of the motorbikes,” he said.
Chaula said he was optimistic that the extension workers will frequently visit farmers and advise them to adopt good agriculture practices to boost produce in the district.
Dowa district commissioner Stallich Mwambiwa said they decided to buy the motorcycles to ease mobility challenges.
“Our analysis shows that we are an agro-based district; hence, the need to ensure that extension workers are well-equipped to reach out to farmers,” he said.
One of the extension officers, Daniel Chisale from Mponela Extension Planning Area, said the motorbikes will help them visit farmers in remote areas.
“This will help farmers receive guidance on time,” he said.
A farmer from Traditional Authority Kayembe said extension workers are crucial in advising farmers on new farming technologies and others.
The council also bought fertiliser, maize seed, chemicals, sprayers and other farm inputs for its mega farm project
