Since 2022, Oyama Project Leader (PL)has been building a research center in the West region of Lusaka, Zambia. In August 2024, researchers Utako Aoike and Kentaro Noda of RIHN joined at the center.
The center will receive food scraps and vegetable scraps from markets and restaurants as pig feed. And the pig’s manure will be utilized through the dry composting process. Lusaka’s growing population and rising incomes have increased the demand for pork, and there is a large market for pig farming. However, there are problems with sewage and odors from pig production, especially in the residential area. This can be treated by dry composting method to produce nutritious compost that will be used for organic maize cultivation.
The daily work is being handled by the two Zambian locals Benson and Elias, long time friends of Oyama. Elias has been his research assistant since 1993, when PL Oyama was a graduate student.
Maize is a staple food for Zambians and organically grown maize, which does not use chemical fertilizers is in high demand especially among the up-coming wealthy. By creating an organic circulation system, the Project plans to not only increase food production, but also open up a new area of organic farming in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia.
