NGO pumps in K1.4bnin dairy value chain
We Effect, an international non-governmental organisation (NGO) of Swedish Cooperative Movement, has invested K1.4 billion in Malawi Dairy Value Chain Project to boost milk production.
The NGO’s country manager Esther Chirwa said this on Wednesday when a Swedish delegation led by its secretary general Anna Tibblin toured Mapuyu Milk Cooperative in Traditional Authority Kalolo in Lilongwe.
She said the NGO is working with five milk bulking groups providing them with assets and technical capacity.
Said Chirwa: “We Effect is a member of Agricord and we received the funds to implement this project under the Farmers Organisations for Africa, Caribbean and Pacific [FO4ACP]. We started the project in 2021 and it will run until 2027.
“It involves a number of interventions such as capacity building for farmers. We have also invested equipment to support processing for dairy concentrates in cattle feed.”
She said apart from Mapuyu Milk Cooperative, they are also working with bulking cooperatives in Ntchisi, Dedza, Ntcheu and Dowa districts.
Malawi Dairy Chain project manager Andrew Chimalizeni said We Effect came in to address value chain challenges that dairy farmers faced as a result of Covid-19.
“The challenges included lack of feed resources, lack of access to profitable markets and also institutional challenges. The project came in to address such challenges and also strengthen existing structures that have been weakened by Covid-19,” he said.
Mapuyu Cooperative chairperson Agnes Chiutenda thanked We Effect for the support, saying they are now producing an average of 6000 litres of milk per day from 1200 litres in 2021.
On her part, Tibblin said she was impressed with the cooperative’s business approach.
The project is funded by Ifad and the European Union through Agricord
