English
Français
The Zambian German Agricultural Knowledge and Training Centre (AKTC), which is implemented by a consortium of AFC (lead company), DEULA Nienburg, DLG International and IAK Agrarconsulting Leipzig since August 2014, is financed under the Bilateral Cooperation Programme of the German Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL). The political partner in Zambia is the Ministry of Agriculture; operational partners on the Zambian side are the Zambian National Farmers Union (ZNFU) and the Golden Valley Agricultural Research Trust (GART). Currently 10 European private agribusiness companies are supporting the project with agricultural machinery, chemicals, a solar power system and technical advice.
Phase 3 of the project has just started on the 1st of August and will have a duration of additional three years until July 2024. Activities will continue as in the previous phases with the provision of practical trainings in sustainable crop production, farming as a business etc. for emergent farmers, students and multipliers (extension service, university lecturers) and demonstrations on climate-adapted mechanized crop production, but will also focus on the development of the AKTC as a regional competence centre for climate resilient agriculture.
With the new component for “Climate Adapted Farming Methods” (CAFM), added to the project in 2019, trials and demonstrations for mechanised conservation agriculture on additional (rainfed) land were carried out with promising results and with the scientific support of the University of Hohenheim (Germany) and the University of Zambia (UNZA). These CAFM trials and demonstration will continue during phase 3 and results will be shared and discussed with a network of regional partners through a Regional Working Group for climate resilient agriculture. This will include the evaluation of the effects of modern technology and climate-resilient practices on yields, cost efficiency, soil improvement, water saving etc. A close cooperation with the Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU) is envisaged in this respect under a separate BMEL financed project.
One of the new objectives of phase 3 is the development of the AKTC into an independent self-sustainable centre after BMEL financing. In this respect, the team will look at possible option for additional service delivery for income generation and will thus, look for new target groups and partners that are interested in the offered services.
For further information please contact: Helmut Anschütz – AKTC Team Leader helmut.anschuetz [at] afci.de or Tesa Weiss – Project Manager tesa.weiss [at] afci.de
Or visit the website, Youtube channel or Facebook page of AKTC Zambia.