(12 Sep 2025)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mulanje, Malawi – 28 July 2025
1. Wide of a woman washing her laundry in a shallow river highlighting effects of climate change after cyclone
2. Various of farmer showing the effects of climate change on crops
3. SOUNDBITE (Chichewa) Alex Maere, farmer:
“When we joined the AI group, we rented farming fields and cultivated various crops, including maize. We have been harvesting enough. Even though there have been challenges, we have registered success because we have been selling the maize. I also got some money and invested in the production of tomatoes, which gives me hope for success. ++SHOT CHANGE++We are thankful to AI for their reliable counsel because we have benefited. We have also gained a lot.”
4. Mid of local community members examining plant leaves and using a smartphone for agricultural purposes
5. Close up of smartphone being used to photograph a plant
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Richard Chongo, Country Director for Opportunity International Malawi:
"The good thing with this chatbot, it provides response when you ask it by text. You can also ask it using voice, so it will retain a response using voice note. So this helps for people that are not able to read and write but it is able to receive a question through pictures."
7. Mid of a man and examining plants held by women in a field
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Richard Chongo, Country Director for Opportunity International Malawi:
"So, we are working to help the smaller farmers manage and deal with the shocks that come due to the climate changes. We have seen that in the past few years we’ve been hit by different cyclones and we have seen the impact of climate change.”
9. Wide of women collecting water at a rural water source and walking
10. Mid of a woman watering crops in a field, highlighting local agricultural practices.
11. SOUNDBITE (Chichewa) Filesi Topola, small hold farmer:
“Cyclone Freddy left us literally without food. We did not harvest anything because all our fields were washed away. We don’t have anything to hold on to.”
12. Wide of cyclone survivor demonstrating the state of soil quality after the cyclone
13. SOUNDBITE (Chichewa) Faluze Makono, cyclone survivor:
"The river division is as a result of the cyclone Freddy. This river was only created because it missed its normal course. The original river is where the stones are."
14. Various of local women washing clothes by the river in Mulanje, Malawi
STORYLINE:
LEADIN:
Farmers in the south-east African country of Malawi are using an AI chatbot for advice to help them improve their methods and become more resilient to climate change.
Backed by the Malawi government, the chatbot is designed by the non-profit Opportunity International and is being used by around 180,000 rural households.
STORYLINE:
Here in Mulanje, southern Malawi, the effects of 2023’s Cyclone Freddy are still being felt.
Local farmer Alex Maere survived the destruction when it tore through the area. Sadly, his farm didn’t.
The 59-year-old saw decades of work disappear with the precious soil that the floods stripped from his small-scale farm in the foothills of Mount Mulanje.
Cyclone Freddy destroyed his first maize.
In a good year, Maere says he would harvest at least 17 bags of cassava, instead he made only 8 kilograms (17 pounds) after the cyclone swept this area.
Freddy jolted local farmers into action. To survive, they needed to change their age-old tactics.
The AI chatbot suggested Maere grow potatoes last year alongside his staple corn and cassava to adjust to his changed soil.
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