NUI Blog - Northrise University Initiative

It was a cool morning at around 4:00 AM on the 21st of August at the Northrise Farm. A light truck from Hybrid Zambia pulled into the Northrise Farm premises. Bob Chewetu, the farm foreman, was at hand with other farm hands to receive the second batch of chicks. They totaled 3000 in all. For the next six weeks these chicks will be natured under very strict bio-security measures until they are ready for market as meat. These measures are aimed at protecting the chicks from disease. Only the poultry personnel will be allowed in and out of the poultry. They have to wear special poultry attire that is washed with a disinfectant. Before entering the poultry house they also always have to step in the footbath. The footbath is filled with a disinfectant that kills any pathogens that may be lodged in the soles of the shoes.

The chicks were put on a starter menu of Broiler Starter in crumble form for the first three days. After which they will be fed broiler starter in pallete form. “The reason we are using Broiler Crumble is because the chicks are eating for the first time, and so the particles of the feed should be very, very small,” Bob said. The chicks will be ready for market between the 5th and 7th of October. “A big number of the chicks when ready for meat will be sold on cold dressed rate.” This means that the abattoir will be used to process the chickens. Another advantage of this is that the chickens will be sold per Kilogram as opposed to the live weight-selling price. The live weight-selling price is usually a flat figure.

The use of the abattoir will create employment for the locals in the Northrise Farm surrounding area. Bob has mentioned that the abattoir may need at least four more hands to help in the dressing of the chickens. These people will be trained in the skills involved in preparing dressed chickens, a vocational skill that will enable them earn a living and uplift their standards economically.

The harvesting of bananas is still ongoing as the fruit is still plentiful and ripening. Bob said, “Harvesting is still on until maybe the middle of October”. Clients for the Northrise bananas include members of the surrounding community and retailers in Ndola town center. “I have started a small business from the bananas I buy here. The price is reasonable and I make a small profit which helps me and my family,” said Magret Chilufya, one of the clients from Twapia, a township close to the Northrise Farm.

By Godfrey Mpala

As the saying goes, ‘a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step’, it would not be entirely accurate to attribute the statement to the coming of the Cal Poly team to Northrise. But when one thinks of the bright future of this God ordained University, the statement reflects vast degrees of truths.

On the 13th of August 2009, Dr. and Mrs. Baker from the Cal Poly toured the Northrise Farms for the very first time. They were accompanied by Dr. Pedersen, the dean of the school of agriculture at the Cal Poly and Steve Bowie and Allan smith who sit on the board of Northrise University Initiative USA. The visiting team was very impressed at the progress made at the land. Fully ripe bananas being harvested, and a very well informed Bob, the farm foreman, who was ready to share his knowledge and love for agriculture, welcomed them. The team took a tour of the poultry house, the workshop and the chicken abattoir that is about to be fully functional in the next few days. Having been satisfied with the agriculture progress at the land, the team decided to tour the business building. What the team found there was also very exciting. The building has reached roof level and should be done in the next 3 months. There was a lot of activity at the building with the construction workers working hard to beat their deadline.

The last stop at the land was the student dormitory. This too did not disappoint. They were very clean and stocked with cozy furnishing that resonated a mood of calm and tranquility that is very vital for students and their studying. A student who was present, Peter, briefed the team on how the dorms have made life easier for students like him who come from outside town. The visit to the dorm marked the end of the team’s tour of the Northrise future campus site.

Other places the team visited outside Northrise University include: seeds of hope; a borehole drilling company in Ndola’s Kansenshi area; Ndola Girls National Technical High School; Arising Life Ministries (ALM) children’s counseling center, run by a Northrise University student, Joyce Chimbila, who was presented with a gift of books for the children by Steve Bowie; Mapalo Community school also run by a Northrise University student, Ps. Emil Mukuka; and Lastly, the Arthur Davison children’s hospital (ADH).

By Kanyanta

We have followed with interest the progress of work on the land. The dedication of work, care, and devotion that has gone into this project so far has been phenomenal. Everyone has heard numerous reports of how well the chickens and bananas are coming along. We have seen pictures of this, read, and heard animated tales from various people; Undeniably foremost from Dr. Zimba. The completion of the student’s dormitories was an important milestone and the students now living on ‘The Land’ have been witnessing firsthand the impressive progress.

So after constantly hearing reports, students and staff finally got a taste (literally) of The Land’s produce. A collective of approval swept the dining hall after the food was blessed and lunch revealed, served alongside the meal a pair of plump, mouth-watering bananas. If the ruminating jaws were anything to go by, we were all incredibly glad The Land is so successful. It is really an incredible thing that what began as a mare project has today began to supplement to our diet. Both students and members of staff are actually being fed but what we have only been hearing of by word of mouth, as a project, today it is a reality.  Northrise University- being excellent at what is good.

By Duke

It was in early February 2008 that the initial pilot project to plant bananas on a 2 hectare stretch of land on Northrise Farms began. A lot of work has gone into ensuring that the initial suckers became what are now banana plants. According to Bob, the farm foreman, the bananas, which are of the Cavendish William variety, were actually planted off-season. This has a certain drawback in that the suckers are more difficult to maintain during this time of year due to the effect that the cold weather, which comes after February, has on the plants.

This off-season planting however was not something not thought about. It is because of the very off season planting that one year 4 months later the bananas are ready for sell and are highly on demand on the Ndola market because most farmers of bananas do not have the fruit during this time of season. The once bare 2-hectare piece of land on the Northrise farm is now flourishing with bananas that are ready to be sold. It has been a long time of dedicated nurturing of the plants by the Northrise farm workforce in which a lot of lessons have been learnt. These lessons are important as Northrise continues to strive to move towards self-sustenance. Bob has mentioned that the future plan is to have banana plants from which Northrise Farms will be able to harvest all year round. This will enable the farm to meet the demand on the Ndola market for the banana fruit.

Individual workers on the farm have also acquired skills that they previously did not posses. In essence, Northrise continues to empower the community through capacity building as well as a supply of healthy supplements to the diet. Not many average Zambians can afford fruits to supplement their diets. Northrise’s goal is to continue to empower the community of Ndola and change the Zambian economic landscape through this empowerment.

25th  May was another great milestone in the history of Northrise Farms. For six delicate weeks, Mr. Bob Chiwetu and his farm crew oversaw the rearing of 1000 broiler birds. This was the first poultry initiative at the farm. Finally, by the given date, the birds were ready for the market with an unusually outstanding weight compared to the usual weight of chickens on the Ndola market.

Northrise Farm and the main campus site have fondly come to be known as the land by the Northrise family and the local people. The local people in the surrounding area of the land were among the first to sample the chickens. Before long people from around the townships (Twapia, Chifubu, George, etc) and suburbs (Hillcrest, Kansenji, Pamodzi, Itawa, etc) of Ndola came flocking to the land to buy the chickens.

Bob and his team ventured out of the land and delivered over 500 chickens at Ndola’s main market, in the Masala area. To date, the majority of Ndola residents is still having a taste of the Northrise Farms chicken. Bob noted that “there is market out there and by God’s grace, the next venture will even be bigger. We have learnt a lot from this first experience and we hope to raise the bar in the next venture.” God is indeed charting the way for Northrise. Members of staff and students alike delighted in this development at the land. They all bought varying numbers of chickens for home consumption as a show of support in the quality of the birds that Northrise had brought to market.

A number of people from all walks of life have contributed to making this first poultry venture a success. Some left their homes in June of last year and came to Africa, Zambia, Ndola and worked on the land laying the foundation for this first chicken run. Most in this group had never been to Africa before. Some have offered their expert guidance and still others have offered their prayers and moral support. May God continue to direct the way Northrise progresses and continue to touch the lives of those who contribute their support in varying ways.