Agriculture in Zambia: Farming in Zambia

To fully understand the structure of Agriculture in Zambia or simply Farming in Zambia, let us first explain this concept. Agriculture is the growing of crops (arable farming) and the keeping of domesticated animals (pastoral farming) as well as the keeping of birds (poultry farming) either for sell (commercial farming) or home consumption (subsistence farming).

Factors Affecting Agriculture in Zambia

• Climate
• Distance from the market
• Soils
• The role of the government
• Transport facilities Importance of Agriculture
• Brings in foreign exchange through exports like tobacco, coffee and cotton
• Generates 22% of Zambia’s gross domestic product (GDP).
• It contributes to food security, income, and economic growth.
• Provide raw materials such as cotton, soybeans and sugar cane for industries
• Provides food for people and livestock
• Source of income for the majority of people in rural Zambia Types of Agriculture

Types of Agricultural Systems Practiced in Zambia

There are three types of agricultural systems practised in Zambia, and these are:

Subsistence/Traditional Agriculture

• It is the cultivation of crops and the keeping of animals as well as birds for home consumption with little or no surplus for sale.
• The intention of the farmer is to grow crops to feed the family.
• This is also called small-scale farming

Emergent Agriculture

• This is also called semi-commercial farming.
• It is the growing of crops and the keeping of animals as well as birds enough to feed the family and sell the extra food.
• It differs from traditional farming in that farmers employ contemporary agricultural techniques, such as chemically spraying crops.

Commercial Agriculture

This is the large-scale production of crops and the commercial rearing of animals and birds. Subsistence/Traditional Agricultural System

Characteristics of Traditional Agriculture in Zambia

• Farms are small
• Food crops like corn, millet, cassava, beans, groundnuts, sweet potatoes, etc., are primarily grown.
• Simple tools are used, For example, axes, hoes, machetes, and even sticks
• The yields are low
• They do not use chemicals and fertilizers Types of Subsistence farming

There are three kinds of subsistence farming systems in Zambia and these are:

• The Chitemene system
• The Mambwe-Lungu-Namwanga system
• The Lozi System

The Chitemene system of Agriculture

This agricultural system is practiced by the Bemba-speaking ethnic group in the Northern and Luapula Provinces. It is also utilized in various forms in the Central, North-Western, Western, and Copperbelt Provinces. The term “Chitemene” is a Bemba word that means “cut-over area.” In North-Western Province, this method is referred to as “Ntena.”

How Chitemene is done

• Between May and August, small trees and branches of large trees are chopped down by men and boys
• Smaller trees are chopped about a meter above the ground.
• In September/October, women carry branches and pile them up in circular stacks (heaps) within the cleared area.
• Around October/November, at the onset of the rains, the stacks are burnt to produce an ash bed.
• The ash-covered patch is then cultivated
• Sowing/planting is done in November/December.
• After using the piece of land for 3-4 years, it is abandoned and then the farmer shifts to a new piece of land (normally virgin) as the old one has lost fertility (hence the name shifting cultivation).

Crops grown include;

Millet, maize, cassava, pumpkins, myungu, cowpeas, sweet potatoes, sorghum, groundnuts e.t.c

Factors favouring (encouraging) Chitemene system

a) Physical factors

• High rainfall of about 1000-1600mm makes the soil leached and acidic.
• Burning it turns to neutralizes the acidic soil to make it fertile
• Poor, infertile soils
• Presence of heavy rainfall which encourage the growth of trees.

b) Social factors

• Bembas are not traditional cattle-keepers
• Low population densities in places where Chitemene is practiced

c) Economic factors

• The farmers are poor and cannot afford to buy farming inputs e.g. pesticides, inorganic fertilizers e.t.c

Advantages of Chitemene

• Cheap labour (family members provide labour)
• It is not time consuming as it avoids stumping which is time consuming (slow)
• Makes constant weeding unnecessary as most weeds are burnt
• No need to buy fertilizers (ash acts as fertilizers)
• Soil is not disturbed by deep ploughing

Disadvantages of Chitemene

• Although a large area is cleared and so much labour invested, production is low
• Encourages soil erosion by cutting down trees and burning the surrounding grassland.
• It is very wasteful of trees and encourages deforestation
• Nitrogen is lost in the atmosphere by burning
• The Eco-system is disturbed.
• The habitat (homes for living things) is destroyed.
• Useful soil bacteria’s are destroyed by heat from the fire

Reason for the decline of Chitemene

• The government is educating people on the importance of trees and the dangers of deforestation.
• There is decline in the amount of woodland or forests
• There is population pressure due to an increase in the number of people in the areas where Chitemene is practiced.
• Transport network to the market has been improved.

The Mambwe-Lungu-Namwanga system

• This is another traditional system of farming in Zambia.
• It is also called fundika
• It is practiced by the Mambwe speaking people.
• While Chitemene depends on availability of trees, the Mambwe-Lungu-Namwanga system evolved due to population pressure and exhaustion of the trees.

How it is done The system involves:

• Making mounds towards the end of the rainy season, between May and April.
• A grass patch is usually chosen so that the covered grass can serve as manure.
• Opening of the mounds and spreading the manured soil at the beginning of the rainy season, October/November.
• Sowing of millet which is the main staple food crop interspaced by maize, pumpkins and myungu.
• After the first harvest of millet, stubbles are collected in heaps and covered with soil to make mounds for the second year.
• When these are opened up another crop of millet can be planted. 

Below is a rotation system employed by the Namwanga

Advantages of the system

• Trees are not destroyed as fields are made over grassy patches and uses grass as fertilizer
• Allows for intensive cultivation of crops such as millet, beans, cassava, maize, and groundnuts.
• Maintain soil fertility through grass manuring and crop ration.
• Requires no use of chemical fertilizers.
• Can support large population settled on permanent basis.

The Lozi system

• The system is practiced by the Lozi people
• It is practised on the upper Zambezi floodplain
• The seasonal movement of the Lozi people and their animals from the flood plain when it gets flooded to the upland and back is referred to as transhumance

The Lozi system includes:

a) Litapa (Silapa)

• Done in plains with large shallow depressions which receive annual flooding
• Sometimes crops are flooded before they become mature

b) Mazulu (Lizulu)

• Involves cultivation of crops on raised mounds in the flood plains.

c) Lishango (Sishango)

• It is practiced at the edge of the plain which has constant seepage of water from the plateau.

d) Matongo (Litongo)

• This is practiced at the edge above the Lishango zone
• Most villages are located in this area because it is suitable for human settlement.

e) Matema (Litema) 

• These are found on the Barotse sands of the plateau
• Fields cultivated are large because soils are not fertile.

Advantages of the system

• It allows the growing of a variety of crops
• It allows the growing of crops throughout the year.
• It provides rich and productive grazing land for cattle throughout the year.

Problems associated with subsistence farming

• Soil erosion – This is the removal of topsoil by agents such as rain, wind or running water.
• Diminishing yields – This is the decrease in production mainly due to unsustainable methods of farming e.g. Chitemene.
• Deforestation – Due to cutting of trees which help hold soil together. This can lead to soil erosion and desertification.
• Bush fires – This is due to early burning of fields and hunting.
• Lack of capital – No money to purchase inputs or machinery.
• Lack of inputs e.g. fertilizers and seed etc.
• Lack of education – e.g. environmental awareness.
• Unreliable climatic conditions – rainfall and droughts.
• Mono cropping – leads to soil impoverishment.
• Pests and diseases – e.g. Tripanosomiasis and corridor disease.
• Poor buying capacity – market leading to poor sales.
• Poor transport – especially the impassable roads.
• Long distance to markets especially to urban areas.

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