The Trustees and the Phiri Award for Farm & Food Innovators, and the members of Muonde Trust announce with great sadness today the passing (following a massive stroke) of the master himself, the great spirit that was Zephaniah Phiri. He will be buried September 3rd at his home in Mapanzure (Runde). Born in 1927 Zephaniah …
The Passing of Zephaniah Phiri, September 1st, 2015 Read More »
In common with many other semi-arid regions the ancestral agricultural system in Mazvihwa was not based on extensive dryland farming but instead focused around the intensive use of natural wetlands – makuvi or dambos in the hills and majeke riverbank gardens in the plains. Elaborate systems of trenches and furrows were dug by hand with …
This historic film is from one of the pioneers of video for development in Southern Africa, Dan Ticehurst, and was made at Mr Phiri’s farm in 1988/89, and recently in 2014 generously rediscovered and shared by him.
The first Phiri Award ceremony was held on October 24th, 2014 at the Baraza Pavilion in Harare, in the presence of its Patron, Mr. Zephaniah Phiri, his wife Constance and eighty guests. The day went admirably – ably MC’d by Tsitsi Choruma – with guest of honor, distinguished rural development thinker Rev. Peter Baka Nyoni, …
Mr. Zephaniah Phiri’s Lifetime of Planting Water: a Record of Achievement Invitation to the Lifetime Achievement Award (PDF) Program for Mr. Phiri Lifetime Achievement Award (PDF) Chapter 1: The Man and His Awards [pl_accordion name=”accordion”] [pl_accordioncontent name=”accordion” number=”1″ heading=”Overview & Introduction by Ken Wilson” open=”no”] Dr. K.B. Wilson On the Occasion of his Life Time …
The following text was extracted from the justification of the Phiri Award by the Phiri Award for Food and Farm Innovators Trust because it speaks in an interesting way about the importance of innovation in the context of food sovereignty. The Role of Farm and Food Innovators All the time everywhere, small scale farmers and …
Advancing Indigenous Innovation and Food Sovereignty in Zimbabwe Read More »
Below, Frank Loewen describes the making of his film, The Rainwater Harvester. Mr Phiri’s experience in Improving Dryland Management, featuring Zephaniah Phiri Maseko, Cleopas Banda, and Julious Piti “With a background in forestry, I have been working for many years in rural development projects dealing with environmental restoration and the promotion of integrated natural resource …
Renowned indigenous permaculturalist, Mr. Zephaniah Phiri from Zvishavane, describes the lack of rainfall in the semi-arid natural region four in Zimbabwe and the good results he’s had with his water harvesting pits that gather and infiltrate what falls in the few major storms they receive. Mixing his humourous style with penetrating questions, and an eye …
