Mining & Trade News

By Marcel Chimwala

ASX-listed DY6 Metals has announced exciting results for its exploration work for rare earths and phosphate at Tundulu in Malawi’s southern district of Phalombe.

DY6 Chairman Daniel Smith says in a Press Statement that a total of 63 metallurgical samples were collected from 37 sample locations along high-grade historic trench (TUTR10) at Tundulu.

Smith explains that sampling results returned up to a high of 3.35% Total Rare Earth Ore (TREO) and 27.5% Phosphorus pentoxide (P2O5) over the sampled 83m length of trench TUTR10.

He says: “An exciting component of the sampling results is the average HREO, being 13% of the TREO basket.”

“Undetectable to very low levels of deleterious elements including mercury, lead and cadmium in the phosphorus (P) rich rocks confirms the exceptional grade quality of the phosphate at Tundulu; and the sampling is representative of the mineralised Bastnaesite and Apatite carbonatite rock types exposed within the trench.”

Smith reports that selected samples are being collected to form a 150kg composite to be sent for metallurgical analysis while five bioavailability composite samples were also taken across various historical trenches at Tundulu, targeting phosphate-rich rocks, to determine the solubility of phosphate in the samples and understand its potential for direct fertilization.

He says the majority of samples showed excellent P solubility (using 2% citric acid) of over 40%, with one returning solubility of 81%. This is above the industry threshold of 9.4% P2O5 solubility using Citric Acid as the reagent in the acid leach process.

DY6 also collected nine samples representing predominant lithologies at Tundulu which will also be sent to RSC Australia.

Tundulu is formed of several hills in a ring around a central vent called Nathace Hill where the majority of the historic surface sampling and drilling was undertaken.

The predominant geology at Nathace Hill is REE apatite hosting carbonatites and feldspathic breccia and comprises a large inner agglomerate vent.

Mineral rich carbonatite also occurs at Tundulu Hill east of Nathace and Makhanga Hill west of Nathace and is previously unexplored and prospective for REEs and niobium mineralisation.

REE mineralisation remains open towards southern and western directions of Nathace Hill and potentially extends beyond the boundaries of the previously established mineralised area over Tundulu Hill. Initial indications of mineralisation appear to be high in valuable MREEs and low measurable radioactive uranium (U) and thorium (Th). This compares favourably to Lynas Rare Earths’ Mount Weld Central Lanthanide Deposit where Th and U concentrations in the ore are approximately 660 ppm and 25 ppm respectively.

The Tundulu metallurgical test work will aim to evaluate historical studies undertaken at Tundulu and assess the findings from a 2017 metallurgical report, completed by the previous operators of the licence. The test work will initially focus on validating the beneficiation results achieved by the previous laboratory.

“Conducting test work at this early stage enables the Company to ascertain the preliminary viability of producing two product streams: namely a REE commercially saleable concentrate and a mixed phosphate concentrate containing rare earths,” says Smith.

Ngala Hill Platinum Group Elements, Nickel and Copper Project

Meanwhile, samples taken from the Company’s recent reconnaissance soil and rock chip program at the Ngala Hill Platinum Group Elements, Copper and Nickel Project have been submitted to SGS South Africa for analysis, with results expected soon.

By Tawonga Nyirenda Mayuni

MD for Aanya Mining Company Frank Mwenifumbo has revealed that his Indian partner has pulled out of their coal mining venture in Rumphi out of frustration due to delays by the Ministry of Mining to grant a mining license.

Aanya incorporated the investor in a joint venture partnership three years ago but despite the company being granted the license in August this year, the investor had already lost interest.

“Despite the license being approved by the licensing committee some time back, it has only been released at a time the investor had lost interest and shifted his interests to Zambia,” Mwenifumbo said.

He explained that it took five years of waiting to get the license, which was frustrating the foreign investor.

He said: “After a gruesome process, we are happy that we finally have a mining license, hence we can now start our activities on the ground.”

“The Department of Mines (DOM) should change and operate with a kind of pragmatism especially to us Malawians. Further, the DOM should not rush to revoke a license because of lack of finances to kickstart operations. There is no bank in Malawi that finances mining ventures, hence we need strategic partners and the support of the government.”

Mwenifumbo, however, commended the current Minister of Mining Monica Chang’anamuno for her commitment to encourage indigenous Malawians to invest in big mining ventures.

He was, however, quick to point out that the Minister’s commitment to promote locals to invest in mining is contrary to the behavior of DOM employees who are always on the neck of local mining companies that are not mining despite being given licenses.

He said: “The DOM keeps on asking mining companies why they are not mining despite having a license. Mining is not a simple thing as you have to look for investments and capitalize the activity and this is not a small process.”

By Modester Mwalija

The Malawi government says it is seeking a strategic partner to invest USS76.2 million to develop the Chiweta Geothermal Power Generation Project in Rumphi, which will be developed in a public and private sector partnership arrangement.

This is highlighted in Malawi Investment Projects Compendium Volume published by the Malawi Investment and Trade Center.

The project will generate up to 10 MW of electricity, contributing significantly to the national grid and supporting the country’s industrialization goals.

The report says that the government’s preference is to develop the project through an Independent Power Producer (IPP) following a Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (BOOT) model with a 30-year concession period.

“A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) will be established to oversee the project’s implementation, ensuring efficient management of the development phase and future operations,” reads the report.

It says pre-feasibility studies conducted reveal that the project is technically, economically, financially and environmentally viable.

“This project is aligned with the government’s energy sector and economic development goals as outlined in the National Energy Policy and the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy,” the report reads.

The project’s key benefits include provision of additional power to the national electricity grid, thereby improving access to electricity for both households and industries. Employment opportunities will also be created during and after the construction phase of the project.

In addition to boosting local electricity supply, there is potential for Malawi to export surplus power generated from the project to generate foreign exchange revenue as government plans to connect to the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).

The project will involve drilling to install a fluids conveyance system, power plant construction and construction of transmission line.

“Geoscientific investigations, including geological, geochemical, and geoelectrical surveys, have confirmed the feasibility of the project. These studies have enabled experts to develop a conceptual model of the geothermal field and outline its main characteristics, suggesting the project's technical and financial viability,” reads the report.

The project site is underlain by biotitic gneisses of the Basement Complex, covered by clastic sediments of the Karoo System and by a thin level of Quaternary deposits.

In a related development, the Malawi Government is seeking a strategic investor to develop the Fufu Hydropower Project on South Rukuru River in Rumphi district.

The Malawi Investment and Trade Centre explains in the compendium that Fufu is designed as a storage power plant through the reservoir formed by a 114m high RCC dam.

It, therefore, offers the possibility to be operated in base mode, following the load and responding to the instant changes in power demand. The guaranteed generating capacity of the station is 146.3 MW and the total installed capacity is 261 MW. The objective of the project is to increase the supply and reliability of power in the country.

“The geographical location of the power plant is very ideal for system voltage stabilization as it is situated in the northern region of Malawi which has no generating station rendering it prone to power quality issues due to long transmission distances. A feasibility study on the Fufu Hydropower Project is available,” reads the Compendium.

A Bankable feasibility study conducted for the project reveals that the investment cost for the project is US$702.5 million and the specific investment cost is US$2,700 per kW. The project Internal Return of Return (IRR) is approximated to be 12.1% and the levelized electricity cost is 3.5 US cents/kWh. Additionally, the project’s Net present Value is US$123 million.

The report says the project which proposes a 350MW hydro-power plant is technically, economically and environmentally feasible.

The Compendium reads: “The project is financially feasible and sustainable. The financial internal rate of return (FIRR) for the project ranges from 12% to 17.5% and a Net Present Value of between US$110.5 million and US$ 356 million respectively depending on the scenarios.”

“Additionally, the Cost-Benefit results of the project are very promising ranging from 1.03 (where construction is delayed by one year and the construction cost increased by 10%) to 1.35 where the construction cost is decreased by 10%.”

 “These results show that the project is financially viable as the revenues from the project are sufficient to cover its capital costs and operating costs and to provide the investor with adequate profit.

By Wahard Betha

Forty members of youth organizations operating across the country had an opportunity to acquire knowledge in natural resource governance thanks to the training workshop that was organized by the Norwegian Church Aid and Dan Church Aid (NCA/DCA) Joint Country Programme (JCP) in partnership with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) operating in Malawi’s extractives sector.

The two-day boot camp which took place in Balaka district as one of the major mining hotspot districts was part of the Fighting Inequalities Strengthen Civil Society Program being backed by the NCA/DCA JCP.

Coordinator for Natural Resources Justice Network (NRJN) Kennedy Rashid told Mining & Trade Review that the training was organized upon realizing the gaps in youth involvement in mining.

Rashid said the training was to ensure youth from different mining hotspots districts were fed with information that will help them govern their respective organizations in their communities for better future of the sector.

He said: “This training was developed out of an assessment that was made in the mining sector where we identified a gap in youth participation in mining activities.”

“We felt like it is good to train some youth from those districts considered mining hotspots so that they are imparted with basic knowledge of mining to bridge that gap.”

“We trained them today to empower them so that they are able to engage authorities to ensure that decisions they make now do not negatively affect them in future. We want to mitigate negative impacts of mining activities taking place now in the future.”

The two-day boot camp introduced the youths to some of the policies, rules, and regulations currently being implemented in the mining sector.

NCA/DCA Country Coordinator for the joint Fighting Inequality Program Mwai Sandram expressed excitement saying with the training, they have accomplished the first objective of their program.

Sandram said they engaged the youth understanding that they are the majority of the population hence the future of the mining sector lies in their hands.

He said: “We are very impressed as joint country program because we have met the first part of the objective which is sharing knowledge with the youth.”

“Within the 2-days we have gone through the Mines and Minerals Act, Mines and Minerals Regulations, mining value chain and corruption in mining sector. These topics are very important in the participation of the youth in mining.”

“It is very significant to consider the youth because the youth constitutes the most in the population of the country, they are the most active people and the future belongs to them.”

“We need to involve them because what happens now will affect them in future.”  

Sandram said most of the participants were invited from active groups which is advantage for them to utilize the opportunity in resource mobilization.

He explained that what is needed is for the youth to come up with a plan on how they contribute positively to their communities and fellow youth.

Sandram said: Our program is still continuing and we will support them. What we can encourage them is to generate their own initiatives where we can be coming in here and there to help them in resource mobilization drive.”

“They need to have plans on how they are going to engage their communities and fellow youth.”

The boot camp also included a site visit to a mining site at Nfulanjovu area in the district where the participants appreciated the challenges in mining and what can happen if laws are not followed.

On the third day of the training, the delegates were given a chance to engage with the Ministry of Mining, mining companies and the Balaka District Council.  

Other CSOs who partnered the JCA in the program included: The Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP); and the Malawi Economic Justice Network (MEJN).

There are many mining activities taking place in Balaka with artisanal and small scale miners involved in the extraction of gemstones, gold and limestone while mining companies are pursuing deposits of rare earths and other minerals.

By Modester Mwalija

The spread of Tuberculosis (TB) is on the rise among women miners in Southern Africa, creating a health crisis in the industry. With poor working conditions and limited access to healthcare, many women in the mining industry are at high risk of contracting the disease.

This issue was highlighted at the regional meeting of Southern African Development Community (SADC) Women in Mining Association, held from September 4th -7th 2024 in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Delegates from various SADC countries gathered to review the progress made since the implementation of the Tuberculosis in the Mining Sector (TIMS) initiative in 2012.

Federation of Women and Youth in Mining (FWYM) Secretary Linda Vyachi Mphande who represented Malawi emphasized that tuberculosis remains a significant health threat to women miners, particularly those in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM).

 "Women miners face unique health challenges that are not always addressed in the broader mining health programs," she said.

One of the key concerns she raised was that many women work in poorly ventilated environments and are exposed to silica dust, a major cause of TB and silicosis. These working conditions, combined with a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE), put women at a very high risk of contracting TB.

“Many women miners work in informal or unregulated sectors, meaning they lack access to health insurance or employment protections that could support them through illness,” said Mphande.

Mphande highlighted that women often have less access to healthcare services, particularly in remote mining areas. Even when services are available, social and economic barriers, including stigma, prevent many women from seeking timely treatment.

"There is a stigma around TB in mining communities, and women tend to face more discrimination when they seek treatment. This stigma, combined with gender bias in healthcare services, often leads to delayed diagnosis and poorer health outcomes for women compared to men," she explained.

Despite these challenges, Mphande said there are efforts within Malawi’s mining sector to address the issue of TB among women miners. Through TIMS, mobile health units have been deployed to rural mining areas to conduct screenings and offer treatment.

 "TIMS has been a game-changer for many miners, but there’s still a need for more gender-sensitive approaches to ensure women miners are not left out," Mphande said.

She also appreciated the role of local and international organizations such as the FWYM and World Health Organization (WHO), which has been actively promoting health and safety awareness in mining communities. These organizations work closely with the government and health agencies to run campaigns focused on the prevention of TB and silicosis.

“The National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF) supports ASMs financially, which improves the economic conditions of ASMs, particularly women. These miners are better positioned to access healthcare services and protective equipment that reduces the risk of TB,” Mphande said.

However, Mphande believes that more needs to be done. "We need to ensure that PPE is designed specifically for women and that health services in mining areas are more inclusive. The lack of gender-specific health programs is still a major gap."

She called for stronger regional cooperation within the SADC framework, stressing that TB in the mining sector is a cross-border issue. Many miners in Southern Africa, including those from Malawi, migrate to work in mines across the region, increasing the risk of spreading TB.

She said: "Regional cooperation is key because TB does not stop at borders. We need to work together to standardize health policies and improve cross-border healthcare services for miners."

As for the future, Mphande sees great potential in expanding initiatives like TIMS and involving more stakeholders to ensure sustainable health interventions.

"Linking SADC Women in Mining with more partners will ensure that our efforts last beyond these meetings," she said.

However, she emphasized that addressing the gender-specific challenges women miners face will require more than just policy changes as it will need a shift in how health and safety issues in the mining sector are approached.

 "We need to put women’s health at the center of these discussions if we want real progress," she said.

Mphande’s participation in the SADC meeting has shed light on the ongoing health crisis among women miners and the urgent need for more comprehensive, gender-sensitive interventions across the region. Her advocacy continues to push for better policies and more inclusive health solutions that prioritize the well-being of women in the mining industry.

Slope stability refers to the condition of inclined soil or rock slopes to withstand or undergo movement, Slope stability Analyses are generally aimed at understanding the causes of occurrence of slope failures, or other factors that can potentially trigger slope movements, resulting in a landslide, as well as at preventing the initiation of such movement, slowing it down or arresting it through mitigation measures.

The stability of a slope is essentially controlled by the ratio between the available shear strength and the acting shear stress which can be expressed in terms of a factor of safety.

Slope Monitoring techniques

There are various slope monitoring techniques ranging from simple visual inspection to complex GPS and radar scanning. All these techniques can be classified into conventional and modern-day techniques.

Conventional Techniques

Conventional or traditional monitoring techniques

These involve physical examination and mapping of tension cracks along the slope face. All mine personnel are involved in slope monitoring directly or indirectly. The initial stage in slope monitoring is a visual inspection, which is the foundation of any monitoring program. Mine workers search for any evident signs of deformation and then report them to management for a more thorough examination and monitoring. Routine inspections of active mine slope and dumps slopes is done by mine management.

Modern-Day Techniques

Ground-based radar devices and Global Positioning Systems

These are increasingly integrated into most large open-pit mines’ slope monitoring and management programs. Global Positioning System (GPS) is a navigation and positioning system that follows GPS satellites’ electro-magnetic signals. It measures the movements of slopes, landslides, and subsidence on a continuous-periodical basis. The amount of deformation and slope movements are calculated by comparing the starting and ending positions of the GPS stations. An an improvement to GPS, Differential GPS (DGPS) improves location precision in the range of operations of each system real-time information on slope stability and deformation rates. GPS is also being used as a control point for monitoring mine slope stability in conjunction with photogrammetry, total station networks, and remote sensing pictures. LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) directs a laser beam at the area of monitoring, which provides a graphical/digital depiction of slope and their relative motions based on the journey time of the radiation. They produce virtual replicas of the slope in minutes, similar to photographic images emphasizing crucial regions. Modern LiDAR scanners can be placed on static and mobile surveying platforms and instantly give Digital Elevation Models (DEM) that can precisely identify the deformation zone’s relative magnitude, displacement rate, and position.

 Seismic Technique

Seismic technique has been used in open-cast mining to anticipate slope movements and failures. Micro-seismic events caused by tiny rock movements are collected by data recorders and relayed to the processing system. The events are then analysed to identify the zone of weakness, stress conditions, deformation mechanics, and deformation rate within the rock mass. Significant advancements in mine seismology information effectively reduce risks far before they occur.

Limitations of the Techniques

Selecting a proper monitoring system depends on several parameters, such as area coverage, mode of operation, cost, installation and maintenance concerns. Conventional methods are time-consuming and of low accuracy, and inclinometers, TDRs, extensometers, and LIDAR’s are not appropriate for real-time information and early failure prediction. slope monitoring radar has radically revolutionized the evaluation of geotechnical risk in surface mines.

Advancements

In the past years or so, radar has developed into a cutting-edge technology for monitoring pit wall movements in surface mining with real-time slope monitoring. The radar beam emitted by the antenna scans the slope faces vertically and horizontally. Movements along the slope are tracked both quickly and constantly, in addition to broad area coverage in all-weather conditions. In recent years, 3D imaging of the damaged surface has also been made available by radar monitoring. Radar can be either space-borne or ground-based depending on the application. Recently, Slope Stability Radar (SSR) advances have included broad areal coverage, remote operation from greater distances, and better spatial resolution. Radar systems pro-vide long-range monitoring, broad aerial coverage, and customized aerial coverage with sub-millimeter precision and accuracy. Techniques and recommendations for predicting the moment of failure or outlining the conditions of a predicted slope collapse offer in scientific literature. Getting an overview of the benefits and limitations of these different methods has become complex To simplify things, available works are classified on slope monitoring techniques based on the based on input and output data.

By Wahard Betha

Stakeholders in Malawi’s minerals sector have expressed concern over environmental degradation in small scale gold mining hotspots across the country where Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners (ASMs) abandon the mines without any rehabilitation after exhausting the mineral reserves.   

Coordinator for Chamber of Mines and Energy Grain Malunga said in an interview that the miners are the ones to be blame as they leave the land out of frustration and ignorance on the need for rehabilitation. 

Malunga said: “The miners are to blame. That is the price government pays when it fails to regulate the sector.”

“ASM gold mining is not as well paying as people think. Some leave the sites frustrated because they earn less and find no need to rehabilitate the sites.”

However, Coordinator for Natural Resources Justice Network (NRJN) Kennedy Rashid in a separate interview blamed poor coordination between duty bearers including the District Councils, Ministry of Mining and Malawi Environmental Protection Authority (MEPA).

Rashid said the public expected the involvement of MEPA in monitoring such issues.

He said: “MEPA has not been effective when it comes to monitoring the mining cycle. The expectations have been that since MEPA is involved in the licensing and regulation by government, it would also empower district level environmental officers to inspect ASM activities.”

“But currently the government agencies at local government level where the mining activities are happening seem to not be well coordinated with the central government,” he said.

In his response to our questionnaire, Director General for Mines and Minerals Regulatory Authority Samuel Sakhuta said the Ministry is trying its best to ensure that the problem does not get uncontrollable as it is currently working in collaboration with MEPA and the miners to ensure that they move together in monitoring and supervision in major hotspots.

He said: “For instance, at Manondo where we issued a licence to a cooperative which was assisted by Judah Group, we noted that the environment was not in good shape as we found a big trench left by miners who had run away.”

“Because Judah expressed interest in taking over the mine, they hired an excavator and filled these trenches.”

“If we have financial resources, we want to fill all trenches starting from the gold mining hotspots.”

“Of course, we can blame the miners but we, as government, have to bear responsibility and enforce monitoring, supervision and sensitization so that this should not escalate again.”

Sakhuta also said Government instituted a ban on any illegal mining activity to ensure that miners operate with the environmental conservation knowledge in mind.

He said: “We did that because we want them to be acquiring licenses which will also include some measures on how they can conserve the environment.”

“Through the licensing, we will also be able to trace them when we are conducting monitoring or supervision activities,” he said.

ASMs are major suppliers of gold to Export Development Fund (EDF), a subsidiary of Reserve Bank of Malawi, which was entrusted to be buying gold on behalf of Malawi Government.

ASMs continue to discover a number of small scale gold mining sites across the country, and the major ones are located in Machinga, Kasungu, Balaka, Chiradzulu, Nkhotakota and Nkhatabay.

Despite the presence of alluvial gold across Malawi, the Ministry of Mining is yet to discover source rocks as it has been failing to conduct geological exploration to discover the reef gold deposits due to budgetary constraints.

By Christopher Jimu

The Likoma Activity Centre on Likoma Island is expected to cost interested investors about $263 million to develop it, according to estimates from the government.

The project aims at enhancing the tourism experience at the Island by developing an aquarium to promote awareness of Lake Malawi unique fish species, along with a jetty, casino, luxurious hotel as well as running tracks.

It will also include waste management facilities, cruise ship, expansion of the airport runway and terminal, retail shops and many more.

Principal Secretary for the Ministry of Tourism Chauncy Simwaka says in a Press Statement that the Ministry developed a masterplan which highlights 103 strategic areas for coordinated development with the private sector, and includes the Likoma Activity Centre Project.

Reads part of the statement: “From the 103 investment opportunities outlined in the Malawi National Tourism Investment Masterplan, 10 priority projects were singled out and pre-feasibility studies undertaken. Amongst these 10 priority projects is the development of the Likoma Activity Centre on Likoma Island.”

He explains that in-line with the government of Malawi’s policy on Investment and Trade Promotion, the Ministry of Tourism refers any potential investors to the Malawi Investment and Trade Centre, as the focal point of contact, for further processing of any expression of investment interest.

“To further enhance sector investment, the Ministry is also collaborating with the Ministry of Lands, and Ministry of Local Government, Culture and Unity and District Councils to promote all the 10 priority projects in the masterplan including the development of the Likoma Activity Centre on Likoma Island,” Simwaka states.                                                                                                                                   

ASX-listed Sovereign Metals, which is advancing the Kasiya Rutile and Graphite Exploration Project in Lilongwe, says it has come up with exciting results in the pilot phase of its conservation farming program, which it initiated along-side the local community as part of the Company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

In the 2023/2024 season, Sovereign piloted the conservation farming program with 90 farmers within Kasiya and the surrounding villages, each cultivating 1,250m² of maize.

Sovereign Metals MD Frank Eagar reports that the results of the initiative were  very encouraging, with average yields increasing from 1,244 kg/ha in the 2023 harvest to 3,805 kg/ha in the 2024 harvest—an increase of 306%.

Eagar says following the success of the pilot, Sovereign has expanded the program to include 350 farmers for the 2024/2025 agricultural season.

“Sovereign has demonstrated, through measurable results, that conservation farming is an effective and sustainable community development project, central to long-term shared economic development objectives,” he says.

Eagar explains that Sovereign initiated a pilot conservation farming project during the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 agricultural seasons to demonstrate that agricultural yields of subsistence and small-scale farmers can be improved.

He says: “Improving land productivity is essential to enhancing the livelihoods of subsistence and small-scale farmers in the vicinity of the Kasiya Project. Sovereign views the success of neighbouring communities as linked to our success as a company, and this is an early demonstration of Sovereign’s commitment in that regard.”

Conservation farming involves the permaculture rotation of starch crops and legumes, with minimal soil disturbance. The practice also incorporates the use of mulch and organic compost to enhance soil organic quality over time, with the primary objective of improving agricultural yields.

Conservation farming has been widely recognized for sustainably improving the livelihoods of rural communities across Southern Africa. It is particularly suited to the Malawian context, where shifting slash-and-burn agricultural systems are not feasible, and rural communities are already familiar with permaculture farming and the labour-intensive requirements to meet food, and income needs from the land.

The principles of conservation farming—timeliness, high standards of work, and minimizing resource wastage—are built on the philosophy of responsible land stewardship and intergenerational mentorship.

Successful conservation farming programs typically require agricultural input support during a four-year transition period while improved practices and crop rotation are established, and soil health is restored.

“Sovereign’s long-term objective is that conservation farming will restore the livelihoods of economically affected families and transform the area surrounding the Kasiya Project into a surplus agricultural producer for the Lilongwe and Malawian markets. In addition, this initiative is intended to catalyse the development of the local agricultural value chain, from input supply to value-added processing industries,” says Eagar.

In the pilot phase of the Kasiya Community Conservation Farming Program, several challenges were encountered and successfully mitigated as follows:

• Timing and pests: The late start of the program made it difficult for farmers to collect sufficient mulch, leading to suboptimal farming conditions and termites turning to maize crops after consuming the available mulch. In extreme cases, Sovereign provided pesticide support. Sufficient mulching will prevent this issue in future seasons.

• El Niño: The late onset of rains and prolonged dry spells due to El Niño reduced overall yields. However, the use of conservation farming techniques, particularly mulching, helped mitigate these effects. It is expected that yields would be higher in a normal rainfall year.

• Stalk borer: Stalk borer is a common pest in Malawi, and an outbreak began in December 2024. Sovereign responded by providing mentorship, monitoring, training, knapsack sprayers, and other equipment for stalk borer control. In future seasons, early and natural prevention methods will be implemented.