GREENSBORO, N.C. — Over the summer, the North Carolina A&T College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) hosted a group of delegates from the African countries of Malawi and Zambia.
The government leaders came to Greensboro to witness a showcase of the school's ongoing agricultural research. The visit was coordinated by the university, the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the N.C. National Guard.
“Agriculture is vital for the rural livelihoods of both nations,” said N.C. Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “In both Zambia and Malawi, agriculture Is a major source of employment and economic driver. Both countries are implementing policies and initiatives to enhance agricultural productivity; however, the governments implementing these policies will face many challenges. That’s where assistance is needed and where N.C. agriculture has been asked to help.”
A group of 50 people — who were led by Zambia Minister of Defense Ambrose Lufuma, toured the dairy farm at University Farm, including the school's Automatic Milking System. They were also showed off their beef cattle and poultry units, as well as the "high-culture horticultural research area."
While in North Carolina, the African leaders also visited the Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market, the N.C. State livestock farm and Troxler's personal farm in Guilford County. All this was part of efforts to learn strategies to produce higher yields and use technology that can help grow more food on less land.
“This is such an important partnership,” said Antoine Alston, Ph.D., CAES associate dean for academics. “When you lack the ability to feed your people, you have a security issue. N.C. A&T is uniquely poised to help the National Guard, in our national interest, thanks to the multitude of small-farms programs we have, which can easily be transferred to our Malawi and Zambia partners.”
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