Br. Paul Desmarais SJ
Jesuit Fathers
Lusaka, Zambia
Br.
Paul Desmarais SJ, Jesuit, works as Executive
Director in Kasisi Agricultural Training Centre
(KATC ), Lusaka, Zambia.
Kasisi Agricultural Training Centre (KATC) is
situated northeast of Lusaka, in the Chongwe
District, and has been coordinated by the
Society of Jesus since 1974.
KATC’s vision and mission is to struggle for
justice, preservation of integrity of creation,
ecological equilibrium and sustainable,
equitable use of earth resources. KATC has
trained staff who implement on-the-ground viable
agricultural projects, do research in organic
agricultural production, and give training to
Small Scale Farmers (SSFs) on how to increase
production in their own villages. KATC offers
training courses in the villages, in addition to
residential training in Kasisi.
Increased costs of agricultural production,
decreased soil fertility and yields, higher food
insecurity, unpredictable rain patterns, poor
markets, environmental degradation, low rural
incomes and rural poverty are some of the
problems being addressed by KATC. Young people
are shying away from farming because of the
perceived high cost (especially of inorganic
fertilisers), and women farmer’s health,
especially those living with HIV/AIDS, is being
damaged by chemical fertilisers. The main aim of
this project was to increase agricultural
production in Zambia and to contribute towards
the improvement of the living standards of the
SSFs in Chongwe and other districts. The core
element is the purchase and building of a Centre
Pivot Irrigation System.
Small-scale farmers in Chongwe district of
Zambia have markets in Europe and South Africa,
as well as within Zambia, for such organic
products as cotton, vegetables, chillies, and
lentils. IFOAM, the international body
regulating organic products, are requesting
organic growers to plant organic seeds.
Zambia is not presently producing any organic
seed. As part of my role with KATC, in 2007 we
produced this organic seed for farmers. KATC
also produced research on organic OPV (open
pollinated variety) seed under irrigation. The
centre pivot equipment purchased in 2007 allowed
KATC to produce a larger volume of high quality
OPV/organic crops and seeds for its farmers and
continue its research for small-scale organic
farming.
The Centre Pivot Irrigation System at KATC also
helped SSFs to grow organic crops at Kasisi for
the markets, produce organic seed for the SSFs
at a cheaper price than they would have to pay
for organic seed produced in Europe, and produce
the necessary volume of organic produce for the
markets. This project also carried out research
and training on Open Pollinated Varieties (OPVs)
of crops and then multiplied OPVs for
distribution to the SSFs.
Financially, there was added income for KATC
from growing irrigated and open pollinated
crops. The technology being advocated was highly
appropriate to the needs of small-scale farmers.
Sustainable agriculture is being based on
indigenous knowledge and systems that have been
used for many years, although they are
constantly being updated.
A number of small-scale farmers have been able
to raise their standard of living dramatically
by following organic farming methods. Finally,
with the rising cost of fossil fuels, energy
implications must also be considered when
discussing sustainability. Huge amounts of
external energy are required to manufacture
inorganic fertilizer. There was no inorganic
fertiliser used in the new irrigation system, so
the environment was less polluted and the
natural resources preserved from contamination
and available for future generations.