A 50-year-old small-scale farmer in Lumezi has turned the rainy season into a side chick, deciding to settle for irrigation to ensure crops are produced without any interruptions.
Through this initiatiative, Standwell Mtonga, owner of Harrison Farm in Kamimba Ward has transformed his once-dry field into a full-time irrigation farm that now produces crops all year round.
Mtonga struggled for years depending only on rain-fed farming, a method that has become increasingly unreliable due to droughts or effects of climate change.
But in 2024, Mtonga decided to change his tactics when he applied for a K200,000 Constituency Development Fund (CDF) empowerment loan.
With the loan, he drilled a borehole, installed tanks, bought an irrigation system and secured farming inputs.
Today, his once-dusty land is a green belt visible even from the Chipata-Lundazi road.
Mtonga said he invested in irrigation because he wanted a farming method that guarantees harvests, even when rains fail.
“In irrigation, there is more profit than rain-fed agriculture because you are assured of your crops and can plan for the future,” he said.
By October 2025, Mtonga was already expecting to harvest 250 watermelons, 840 cabbages and nearly 5,000 tomato plants.
From these alone, he projected over K32,600 in earnings, the money he plans to reinvest while also repaying part of his CDF loan.
He used K128,000 of the loan to set up the irrigation system and the remaining amount to buy fertiliser for his traditional crops, which helped him generate extra income and begin repaying his loan.
The farmer now hopes to expand further by planting oranges, bananas and citrus fruits and also dreams of making Harrison Farm one of Lumezi’s biggest rural agribusiness success stories.
According to Lumezi Town Council public relations officer Irvin Muyumbwa, Mtonga believes many farmers have the skills but lack capital.
Mtonga therefore urged others to apply for CDF loans to move away from rain-dependent farming.
Meanwhile, Lumezi Town Council chairperson Oliver Mwale, who recently toured the farm, praised Mtonga’s efforts and said the council wants more beneficiaries to invest in irrigation because of its long-term benefits.
“We are encouraging our farmers to venture into irrigation farming. We appreciate what Mr Mtonga is doing and we also appreciate the impact of CDF given to our farmers within Lumezi,” Mwale said.
By George Musonda
Kalemba November 24, 2025
