Malawi’s pigeon pea farmers, once brimming with hope for a lucrative market in India, are now crying foul, urging their government to elevate the humble legume’s standing within national agricultural strategies. The plea comes amidst disheartening data revealing a significant slump in exports to the Asian giant, despite renewed opportunities.
Figures released by the India High Commission in Malawi paint a grim picture: a mere $9.62 million (about K16 billion) worth of pigeon peas (locally known as nandolo) was exported in the first quarter of 2024. This marks a sharp decline from the 52,000 metric tonnes (MT) valued at $13.65 million (about K23 billion) exported in 2022, and a precipitous fall from the $49.29 million (about K86 billion) achieved in 2023.
The Farmers Union of Malawi (FUM) attributes this concerning trend to a systemic oversight. FUM president Manes Nkhata, speaking in an interview on Monday, lamented that despite its immense potential as a key export crop, pigeon pea production has historically received “limited attention” in Malawi’s national agricultural policies and investment plans.
“Compared to crops such as maize or tobacco,” Nkhata observed, “pigeon peas has not benefited from targeted subsidy programmes, research investments or promotional campaigns.” This stark disparity, she argued, has severely hampered efforts to scale up production and enhance competitiveness within the global market. “This lack of institutional support has hindered efforts to scale up production and improve competitiveness,” she asserted, adding that “Government-backed export promotion initiatives can help position Malawian pigeon peas more effectively in global markets.”
The current predicament is particularly galling given a recent diplomatic breakthrough. In January 2024, the Indian government extended Malawi’s pigeon peas export quota for the 2024/25 marketing season. This followed the removal of a 50,000 MT export quota waiver previously imposed on Malawi by New Delhi in 2022 – a development that was initially hailed as a golden opportunity for farmers and the nation to bolster its dwindling foreign exchange earnings.
This move was seen as perfectly aligned with the Malawian government’s broader diversification plan, which aims to intensify legume cultivation to supplement income from tobacco. While tobacco remains the country’s primary foreign exchange earner, its earnings have been on a worrying downward spiral over the past five years.
Delving deeper into the root causes of the production slump, Innocent Pangapanga Phiri, director of the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources Centre for Agricultural Research and Development, highlighted the dominance of smallholder farmers. Speaking separately on Monday, Phiri pointed out their limited access to certified inputs, forcing them to rely on recycled or uncertified seeds. This, he noted, results in “low yielding, less disease-resistant and inconsistent in quality” crops, ultimately undermining productivity and marketability.
Phiri further identified the absence of well-established aggregation centres, the relentless onslaught of adverse climate shocks, and a critical lack of market intelligence and exposure to price volatility as exacerbating factors. “Another major constraint is the lack of access to reliable, real-time market intelligence among smallholder farmers and local exporters,” he stated. “Without insights into such demand-side dynamics, Malawian producers often make uninformed production decisions, leading to missed opportunities when demand peaks.”
To rectify this, Phiri stressed the urgent need for Malawi to “invest in market information systems that provide timely updates on international prices, buyer preferences and weather-related trade patterns.”
Susan Chimbayo, chairperson of the Nandolo Farmers Association of Malawi, echoed these sentiments, citing low access to finance and the absence of structured markets as significant impediments to production.
Attempts to get a response from Ministry of Trade and Industry spokesperson Patrick Botha regarding the status of the market proved unsuccessful at the time of going to press.
Meanwhile, the numbers continue to paint a grim picture: pigeon pea production has plummeted to 17,265 MT in the 2024/2025 farming season, down from 26,245 MT last season. Since India introduced its trade policy on pigeon pea imports in 2017, Malawi has seen a staggering 64 percent loss in export earnings. India High Commission data shows Malawian exports to the Asian country dropping from $39.32 million (about K67 billion) in 2016/17 to a mere $9.05 million (about K15 billion) in 2020/21.
Paradoxically, Ministry of Trade and Industry data indicates that in 2022, Malawi exported a substantial 69,151 MT of pigeon peas, with a significant portion finding its way to the United Arab Emirates. However, India’s import restrictions meant it only received 20,000 MT during that period.
The challenge for Malawi now lies in converting renewed market access into tangible gains, a task that requires a fundamental shift in how pigeon peas are perceived and supported within the nation’s agricultural landscape.
