Examining the Experiences of Smallholder farmers in Malawi towards Farm Input Subsidies
type: CreativeWork
description: The author of this dissertation is the last born in their family. He was born and grew up in the rural area of the Blantyre district of the beloved country Malawi which is also popularly known as the warm heart of Africa for its friendly people. Our African belief states that one's strength is made manifest by the number of children. Like arrows in the pouch of a hunter, so are one's children. They will be able to defend him when his strength is gone in his old age. That led families to have many children even though there were not enough resources for their sustenance and upkeep. Our community consists of agrarian community. When growing up, we prepared our fields between August and September in readiness for the next planting season. Afterward, we could eagerly wait to hear the heavenly voice of thunder and rumblings that announced the coming of the first rains marking the beginning of the new agricultural season. One could catch the distinct earthy flavor of the smell of rain from miles away when rain falls after a long dry spell of weather, and soon, everything would come alive. The land which had been dry, dusty, and barren would turn to beautiful fields covered in green vegetation. Birds could sing beautifully, and livestock could graze as they lazily chased away flies on their backs by the use of their tails. That was usually between October and November, and soon after planting our seeds which maize is a king of all crops, we could count days before enjoying the first fruits of our labors. Those were days when rainfall patterns were predictable and the harvest sure. Close to our village, there was a river that flowed throughout the year. That was where we got water for all our domestic purposes. It was called the Ntengera River, and that means the river that carries all sorts of things. They say that water is life. This river brought all manner of life-giving resources for us. When it flooded during the rainy seasons, it could bring us all sorts of things su…
abstract: The author of this dissertation is the last born in their family. He was born and grew up in the rural area of the Blantyre district of the beloved country Malawi which is also popularly known as the warm heart of Africa for its friendly people. Our African belief states that one's strength is made manifest by the number of children. Like arrows in the pouch of a hunter, so are one's children. They will be able to defend him when his strength is gone in his old age. That led families to have many children even though there were not enough resources for their sustenance and upkeep. Our community consists of agrarian community. When growing up, we prepared our fields between August and September in readiness for the next planting season. Afterward, we could eagerly wait to hear the heavenly voice of thunder and rumblings that announced the coming of the first rains marking the beginning of the new agricultural season. One could catch the distinct earthy flavor of the smell of rain from miles away when rain falls after a long dry spell of weather, and soon, everything would come alive. The land which had been dry, dusty, and barren would turn to beautiful fields covered in green vegetation. Birds could sing beautifully, and livestock could graze as they lazily chased away flies on their backs by the use of their tails. That was usually between October and November, and soon after planting our seeds which maize is a king of all crops, we could count days before enjoying the first fruits of our labors. Those were days when rainfall patterns were predictable and the harvest sure. Close to our village, there was a river that flowed throughout the year. That was where we got water for all our domestic purposes. It was called the Ntengera River, and that means the river that carries all sorts of things. They say that water is life. This river brought all manner of life-giving resources for us. When it flooded during the rainy seasons, it could bring us all sorts of things su…
author: Tambala, Henry
keywords: Environmental Humanities South
date published: 2022
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:23:00Z
provider: University of Cape Town
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Department of Social Development

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37344