Solar-Powered Irrigation Farming Creates Happier Communities in Malawi

When Wilson Banda, 27, from Chaponda Village in Chikwawa District, was working as a shopkeeper, he could hardly sleep peacefully due to the debts he had accumulated. The father of one child who was earning K120 000 ($69 USD) per month, struggled to feed his family and saw no financial progress.

According to Wilson he tried farming in the 2024/25 season and managed to harvest 12 bags of maize, each weighing 50 kilograms.

"That harvest opened my eyes. I decided to quit employment. I returned home and ventured into full irrigation farming, growing tomatoes and other vegetables," says Wilson. 

To support his irrigation farming, Wilson bought a diesel-powered irrigation pump. With the passage of  time, however he realized that he was spending more money on fuel with little benefit.

Realizing that his farming was not profitable, Wilson decided to join Tithandizane Village Bank so that he could access a solar-powered water pump that the group had purchased with support from World Vision Malawi in partnership with World Food Programme Malawi (WFP) and the Government of Malawi. The solar pump which the 15 members of Tithandizane Village Bank take turns when using has enabled Wilson to expand his irrigation farming  and he now grows crops like maize,  tomatoes and vegetables.

After working in his field with the solar pump, Wilson for the first time since he began irrigation farming has managed to save K500 000. He says he plans to use part of the money to settle his debts before focusing on further investment in his venture.

“I am expecting to earn between K900 000 and K1.3 million from my irrigation farming in the next few months after I have harvested the current crops. If it were not for the support I received from World Vision in partnership with WFP, I would not have managed to achieve the freedom I enjoy today,” says Wilson.

According to Village Headman Chaponda, the introduction of solar pumps in his area has helped create a happier community. The local leader says more people in his village now have food and a source of income.