Seed Propagation

At a time when eating has become a political statement, the government is trying to restore the estimated 30,000ha of banana plantation lost to Banana Bunchy Top Dieses (BBTD). Banana is an important food and cash crop in Malawi and is ranked fourth after maize, rice and cassava. Restoration of the banana plantation is slow due to challenges in propagation process and unavailability of dieses free suckers in the country. Despite its importance, the production of banana in Malawi is declining due to among other things, pest and dieses attack, poor agronomic practices, and scarcity of dieses free suckers. Banana production industry is mostly characterized by small holder farmers who have limited access to resources, and with limited presence of medium scale commercial farmers.