25 March 2015, Lusaka. Following a visit to the Southern Province, this month, the European Union funded CASU Project has observed from the project beneficiaries in this dry spell period that Conservation Agriculture (CA) when properly applied increases crop resilience in times of drought.

The southern plateau in Southern Province covers most of agriculture commercial land and produces most of the maize crop; the stable food in Zambia. In the current rainy season, the Meteorological Department under the Ministry of Communications and Transport records below normal rainfall for most districts in the province for the period 1^st July 2014 to 20^th February 2015. However Conservation Agriculture Project Scaling Up (CASU) farmers’ fields in the province are thriving under these conditions of increased soil moisture deficits.

Mr. Child Mwanamuchende is a Lead Farmer in Monze. He was happy he adopted CA on his entire farm and reported that his crop is growing very well even in the midst of dry spells. He wished his neighbors could have followed his example in adopting CA.

“I am sure my friends and neighbors will apply the CA principles in the next agricultural season. My field is showing the benefits of CA through use of planting basins and rip lines compared to the conventional land tillage techniques.

During the visit, Mr. Mwangase Oversease, acting Director at the Metrological department confirmed that the Southern Province received significantly below normal rainfall due to the weak El Niño being experienced in the country. “The weak El Niño has caused the province to receive 30-40% less rainfall than under normal circumstances” he said.

CASU farmers have learnt that planting leguminous crops and agro-forestry species such as Faidherbia albida, locally known as the Musangu tree, increase soil fertility. Field observations show that crops growing under the Musangu tree are much healthier than those further from the tree. The Musangu tree contains the psychoactive chemical compound dimethyltryptamine in its leaves and high in nitrogen, and can double yields of crops when added to the soil. The tree also shades its leaves in the rainy season which is an advantage when intercropped. The CASU project also encourages growing of other leguminous crops such as cow peas, beans, soya beans, ground nuts etc. for nitrogen fixation and soil fertility.

About the CASU Project

The CASU project is a European Union funded project implemented in 31 districts of Zambia. The project’s goal is to contribute to reduced hunger, improved food security, nutrition and income while promoting sustainable use of natural resources in Zambia by 2017. During its four year duration (2013-2017), CASU is expected to benefit 21,000 Lead Farmers (LF) and at least 315, 000 Follower Farmers (FF) of which at least 40% will be women.

The CASU project works closely with the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock through the extension services to ensure CA is scaled up. Among different modes of training, the project uses SMS, Radio, TV, farmer to farmer training and Extension Officer to farmer training. The project by engaging the private sector through the Agro dealer’s network delivers inputs specifically for the establishment of demonstration plots by LF to train FF’s. In the current agricultural season a total of 17,438 out of 19,000 herbicide and seed vouchers were successfully redeemed through an SMS and online input voucher redeeming process.