Ntchisi farmers substitute manure with human urine
Farmers of Kasonga Village in Traditional Authority (T/A) Malenga in Ntchisi District have substituted the use of compost manure with human urine which they say has made their maize yields impressive.
Members of Tazindikira, Mwalawatsidwi and Mtuwa Cooperatives in Ntchisi are expected to realise bumper yields thanks to local fertiliser made from urine.
The three cooperatives were trained in how to make the organic fertilisers derived from animal matter, human and animal excreta and vegetable matter.
Violet Kamwaza, a member of Tazindikira Cooperative, is one of the women in the Village Bank Group under the Community Savings and Investment Promotion (Comsip) Cooperative who have benefited from the project.
“In our group we have learnt a lot such as manure making from the urine and other waste through Cooperatives Enterprise Pathways for Economic and Environmental Sustainability in Malawi Project (Cepeesm)” she said.
Kamwaza said she cultivated three acres of maize to which she applied organic manure only.
“For the urine manure I applied it to half acre as a trial but it is the only plot which will produce more harvest than that of the organic manure,” she said.
Cepeesm project manager John Mulangeni said one of the project’s objectives is to encourage people to produce crops using organic fertilisers
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This is a good example of spreading knowledge appropriate to the people, knowledge which is empowering and doesn’t just make money for some company in the West, like Monsanto. I think having composting toilets in every village in Africa is a worthy and achievable goal to work towards. African people deserve dignity and the power to change their lives for the better through their work. Such facilities would also give them a sustainable source of fertilizer as described in the article. The rural village is the economic powerhouse of Africa! If we can make the villages strong, the people will… Read more »