Dedza woman flies to China to learn agriculture
Keledonia Tandani-Nkhonyo, 52, has left for China to learn agricultural skills courtesy of Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) Innovations Awards.
Tandani-Khonya, who comes from Kachule Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Kachere in Dedza, was awarded in November 2015 for voluntarily teaching farmers modern farming methods such as use of hybrid seeds and irrigation.
She would walk around spreading the information using theatre to 150 000 farmers living within a 30-kilometre radius from her village.
Speaking before her departure at Kamuzu International Airport (KIA) on Wednesday, Tandani-Nkhonya said she expects to learn a lot from China and use the knowledge to teach other farmers back home.
She said: “I am happy with the award. It all started when Story Workshop Education Trust [Swet] trained me in use of hybrid varieties through a one-year project called Mlimi Wozitsata. I voluntarily taught other farmers about irrigation and the importance of hybrid seeds that withstand climate change effects.
“Everything that I will learn in China, I will teach other farmers in Dedza because knowledge is power and it can help our district to achieve food security.”
Swet executive director Kent Mphepo said Tandani-Nkhonya’s award has inspired the organisation to extend Mlimi Wozitsata project by two years reaching out to 10 districts.
The project is funded by United States Agency for International Development (Usaid) through Alliance for a Green Revolution (Agra). n
