By Bester Kayaye
With Malawi seeking to diversify from its overdependence on tobacco as the major economic crop, cassava has come into the limelight as Salima based National Cassava Processors Association (NCPA) has scaled up production of cassava-based industrial and energy products targeting both the local and international markets.
Through its processing factory, NCPA, which was established in 2011, produces a wide range of products including High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF), Sauce, fire briquettes, and animal feeds, among others, from the tuber.
NCPA’s Marketing Representative Geoffrey Chikaonda said in an interview that the association is comprised of about 1,500 voluntary membership of local farmers and processors across the country.
Chikaonda said: “NCPA was established with support from Cassava: Adding Value for Africa (CAVA), which is coordinated by the Chemistry Department at Chancellor College and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).”
“The Association is owned and controlled by its members, cassava processors, who join on a voluntary basis with the objective of increasing income through the provision of value-adding services, and identifying and facilitating access to domestic and foreign markets for processed cassava products.”
NCPA also promotes structural changes at both a macro and micro level to create opportunities for processors to the wider benefit of Malawi’s cassava farmers.
The Association has managed to institutionalize its operations, establish internal operational structures including the executive, and facilitate the development of a draft strategic plan to guide its operations.
Chikaonda said: “This far, the Association also facilitated capacity building services to members with support from C:AVA, Food and Agriculture Association (FAO) and German Technical Cooperation (GIZ), which helped 17 processors to acquire machinery and 13 to initiate the process of procuring machinery.”
“We also coordinated networking and collaboration initiatives with stakeholders for provision of inputs such as clean cassava planting materials to farmers, and initiated the marketing of HQCF to MALDECO Fisheries.”
Chikaonda said NCPA envisions to be one of the major contributors to the Malawi economy through cassava value addition and processing.
NCPA conducted a market assessment which forecast potential growth in the medium and long term for its HQCF despite the current market for the product being narrow in the country.
The assessment estimated that the market could attain a six-fold increase from 40 MTs to 252 MTs of HQCF sold annually within the next few years.
“It was also found that there is significant unused processing capacity, so scaling up to meet this demand should be achievable. Currently, there are approximately 61 MTs of HQCF being produced annually, against a capacity of 869 MTs (representing a capacity utilization of 7%). This means that some NCPA processors, if properly supported, could increase production to meet the demand,” he said.
Chikaonda, however, lamented inadequate capital to capacitate processors to maintain and purchase the much needed machinery.
He said the association, therefore, intends to coordinate efforts with development partners, research institutions and supply chain stakeholders to ensure that members have access to affordable and up-to-date inputs and machinery.
“It is important for processors to have affordable and functioning inputs and technology in order to meet market demand and compete with international enterprises, therefore NCPA will provide support throughout the input purchasing process including communication, negotiations and potentially funding.
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