{"id":28974,"date":"2026-07-27T09:28:47","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T08:28:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tonyelumelufoundation.org\/?p=28974"},"modified":"2026-07-27T09:28:47","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T08:28:47","slug":"daniel-chibwe-mchinji-farmer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tonyelumelufoundation.org\/fr\/alumni\/south-african-alumni\/daniel-chibwe-mchinji-farmer","title":{"rendered":"How One Young Mchinji Farmer is Reimagining Agriculture for Malawi\u2019s Next Generation"},"content":{"rendered":"

MCHINJI, Malawi<\/strong>\u2014On a quiet stretch of land in Mchinji, where most young people dream of escaping farming rather than embracing it, Daniel Chibwe<\/a> is cultivating something far bigger than crops. He is growing an idea.<\/em><\/p>\n

At 28, Chibwe has become part of a new generation of African agripreneurs determined to prove that agriculture is not merely a means of survival but a pathway to entrepreneurship, innovation and economic transformation.<\/p>\n

His journey has taken him from tending fields in rural Malawi to speaking before ministers, policymakers and agricultural experts in Germany, Senegal, South Africa and Liberia. Yet despite the international recognition, his ambitions remain firmly rooted in the same soil where they began.<\/p>\n

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“I saw potential where others saw struggle.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It is a philosophy that has shaped both his career and the evolution of Mlatho Farms, the climate-smart agriculture enterprise he founded to promote permaculture, sustainable food production and youth entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

From lecture rooms to the field<\/h2>\n

Like many university graduates, Chibwe once faced a familiar crossroads.<\/p>\n

Should he join thousands of graduates chasing increasingly scarce white-collar jobs, or take the less travelled path of building an enterprise from the ground up?<\/p>\n

While studying Agricultural Extension at the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), he began exploring how agriculture could become more than farming\u2014it could become a business capable of creating jobs, improving livelihoods and strengthening food systems.<\/p>\n

That shift in perspective laid the foundation for Mlatho Farms<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A defining chapter in his entrepreneurial journey came in 2024<\/strong>, when he was selected for the Programme d'entrepreneuriat de la Fondation Tony Elumelu<\/strong>.<\/a><\/p>\n

Through the programme, Chibwe received business training, mentorship, seed capital and access to one of Africa’s largest entrepreneurial networks\u2014support that strengthened both his vision and the growth of Mlatho Farms.<\/p>\n

“The programme significantly strengthened my knowledge of business management, strategic planning and enterprise scaling,” he says.<\/p>\n

Through intensive mentorship and practical business training, Chibwe developed stronger skills in financial management, value creation, sustainability and long-term planning\u2014lessons that continue to shape the direction of his business.<\/p>\n

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“The programme taught me that producing food is only one part of agriculture,” he says. “If you want to build an enterprise that lasts, you must understand how to create value, manage finances, plan strategically and build for the future.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Those lessons transformed Mlatho Farms from a farming venture into a broader platform for agricultural innovation, farmer training and youth entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

Today, the enterprise serves as a climate-smart agriculture and permaculture learning hub. Since 2022, Chibwe says more than 200 farmers have been trained in sustainable farming practices capable of improving yields by between 20 and 30 percent while strengthening resilience to climate change.<\/p>\n

Learning through failure<\/h2>\n

Success, however, did not arrive without setbacks. At one point, Chibwe invested approximately K250,000 in a horticulture venture that collapsed. Land-related challenges compounded the financial losses.<\/p>\n

“It was my lowest moment,” he says. “I almost gave up.”<\/p>\n

For many young entrepreneurs, such losses are enough to end the dream. Instead, Chibwe treated the experience as tuition.<\/p>\n

“The mentorship I received taught me that failure is part of entrepreneurship,” he says. “What matters is resilience.”<\/p>\n

That resilience has since become one of his defining characteristics.<\/p>\n

Taking Malawi’s voice to the world<\/h2>\n

In just a few years, Chibwe has represented Malawi at some of the world’s most influential agricultural gatherings.<\/p>\n

He joined the Young Leaders in Policy programme in South Africa, participated in the Africa Food Systems Forum in Dakar, Senegal, and later travelled to Berlin, Germany, for the 2026 Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA).<\/p>\n

Standing before delegates from across the globe, Chibwe found himself presenting solutions that looked remarkably different from the high-tech irrigation systems dominating many international exhibitions.<\/p>\n

Rather than promoting expensive imported technologies, he argued that African agriculture must begin with approaches accessible to ordinary farmers.<\/p>\n

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“From an agroecology and permaculture point of view, we need to embrace small and slow solutions,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

“We are talking about swales, berms, box ridges and organic manure. These are practical tools that conserve water and restore soils.”<\/p>\n

His message reflected the realities faced by most Malawian farmers, who often lack the capital required to invest in sophisticated machinery.<\/p>\n

Instead, he called for greater investment in youth, training and affordable technologies capable of transforming smallholder agriculture.<\/p>\n

Building a different kind of farm<\/h2>\n

Beyond international conferences, Chibwe continues investing in local capacity.<\/p>\n

He has supervised six university students completing industrial attachments at Mlatho Farms, exposing them to practical agribusiness management and climate-smart agriculture.<\/p>\n

At the same time, he is pursuing a Master’s degree in Agribusiness Management at LUANAR to strengthen his understanding of enterprise development.<\/p>\n

His vision extends well beyond producing crops.<\/p>\n

He hopes to transform Mlatho Farms into a centre for farmer training, innovation, agribusiness incubation and agricultural entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

The approach has already attracted international support.<\/p>\n

Over the past three years, Chibwe has secured nearly US$12,000<\/strong> in grants and entrepreneurial support from organisations including the Tony Elumelu Foundation<\/strong>, Permaculture Australia and AUDA-NEPAD.<\/p>\n

His work also earned him the Outstanding Fellow Award from the Emerging Public Leaders programme in Liberia, recognising his contribution to community development through sustainable agriculture.<\/p>\n

A different future for Malawi’s youth<\/h2>\n

For decades, farming has often been portrayed as the occupation of those with few alternatives.<\/p>\n

Chibwe believes that narrative must change.<\/p>\n

He argues that agriculture has the potential to absorb thousands of unemployed young people\u2014but only if it is approached as an enterprise rather than an act of subsistence.<\/p>\n

Looking back, he credits much of his journey to the business training, mentorship and entrepreneurial support he received through the Programme d'entrepreneuriat de la Fondation Tony Elumelu<\/strong>, which strengthened his understanding of how to build a resilient, scalable agribusiness capable of creating lasting value.<\/p>\n

His work aligns closely with Malawi’s MW2063 development blueprint, which identifies commercial agriculture as one of the country’s principal engines of economic transformation and calls for greater youth participation in agribusiness.<\/p>\n

Agricultural experts increasingly argue that programmes combining entrepreneurship, mentorship and practical business skills are precisely the kind of interventions required to modernise the sector and create employment.<\/p>\n

For Chibwe, however, the mission is personal.<\/p>\n

He wants young people to see farming not as the profession of last resort but as one capable of creating wealth, innovation and lasting social impact.<\/p>\n

\n

“We are interested in making farming generational in Africa,” he says. “But for that to happen, young people need training, access to land and access to capital.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

As Malawi grapples with youth unemployment, climate change and food insecurity, stories like Chibwe’s suggest that the future of agriculture may not lie solely in government programmes or donor projects.<\/p>\n

It may also lie in a new generation of entrepreneurs willing to return to the land\u2014not because they have run out of options, but because they have discovered its possibilities.<\/p>\n

On a modest farm in Mchinji, that future is already beginning to take root.<\/p>\n

Source: Africa Brief\u00a0<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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