RESEARCH & LEARNING

Improved Livelihooods Among Farmer Field School Members

The End of Term Evaluation has revealed that food household food security has improved for farmers that participated evident in the increase in yield. Analysis of the household survey data shows that the majority of the households are now harvesting 10-33 fifty Kg bags (522-1676Kgs) from an acre of land, a sharp rise from 4-5 bags five years ago. With the surplus production, farmers are able to feed their families and sell produce which improves food security and income levels.

A total of 12,943 Farmer Field Schools have been established reaching out to over 350,000 smallholder farmers (with 60% being women). Aspects of the approach have generated important spillover benefits for non-participants, particularly in the acquisition of skills and knowledge and to become more resilient to climate change.

One of the farmer field school members from Mzimba District, collecting data from the study plot

The livestock pass-on programme has helped households initiate livestock rearing as an alternative income source, as well as a store of wealth that could be utilized in the case of shocks. Farmers purchased livestock such as goats, pigs, and cattle and the livestock equivalent (+176%) significantly increased for the participants.