Conservation Farming Unit

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WELCOME

The Conservation Farming Unit of the Zambia National Farmers Union was established in 1995 to develop and promote the adoption of Conservation Farming (CF) and Conservation Agriculture (CA) practices by Zambia's small-scale farming community. In 1999 the Government of Zambia endorsed the promotion of CF as national extension policy. The need to promote more productive and sustainable farming systems arose from a consensus in Zambia and the region as a whole that small-scale agriculture was in crisis. Conventional small-scale farming practices are unsustainable and have contributed to:

• Declining yields and productivity


• Chronic and transitory food insecurity and inadequate nutrition


• Excessive dependency on food aid


• Land degradation


• Migration of farming communities, encroachment of virgin woodland and deforestation

Farmers who practice conventional farming methods on degraded soils are highly susceptible to the threat of climate change and total crop failure even in seasons of moderately poor rainfall. They are also excessively dependent on increasingly expensive fertilisers which are now unaffordable for the majority.
The benefits of CF and CA are proven and offer farmers the opportunity to:

• Dramatically increase their yields, diversify their production base and engage in economic activity.


• Regenerate their soils and sustain adequate levels of production in all but the worst droughts.


• Liberate themselves from dependency on food aid and excessive use of costly external inputs.


• Practice sedentary agriculture on a sustainable basis.


• Regenerate rather than exploit the environments in which they live.

Today in Zambia over 120,000 farmers have already benefited from the adoption of CF. By 2011 it is our aim to increase adoption to 250,000 families or about 30% of Zambia's small-scale farming community.

To face the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly changing world small-scale farmers must change the manner in which the husband their land.

There is no choice and we believe CA offers the solution. The practices are simple, easy to adopt and accessible to even the most resource poor families. They can also benefit many thousands of farmers in the Southern African region and well beyond.

Have a look at our publication section and contact us if you need advice or technical assistance.