By MILDRED KATONGO –

.DAPP

ABOUT 20,000 farmers in Eastern Province have been supported and trained by the Development Aid from People to People (DAPP) through its integrated soil fertility management programme.
The project is aimed at increasing and sustaining agricultural productivity, food and income security for smallholder farmers.
According to the latest DAPP Zambia progress year report, another farming project being implemented is the farmers’ clubs that empowers small-scale farmers by offering them access to training sessions, model farming, field visits and low-cost technical solutions.
The report states that the farmers who benefited from this project were drawn from Petauke, Katete and Chipata districts.
“The anticipated project outcomes are 100 per cent awareness of integrated soil fertility management practices by target smallholder farmers, resulting in at least 30 per cent increase in agricultural productivity and at least 70 per cent of the targeted beneficiaries using at least one of the promoted technologies,” the report says.
The report says the projects were also expected to contribute, in the long-term, to developing systems that would enable vulnerable rural populations in the area to overcome climate risks.
DAPP implements the agricultural projects to harness the great agricultural potential Zambia has through capacity building and provision of resources to enable farmers engage in sustainable crop and animal production.
The report says this improved food security and income for the small-holder farmers and their families.
The project safeguards the environment and promotes environmentally friendly farming methods, conservation of natural resources through the use of farm forestry, crop rotation and construction of contours.