
In July 2023, the AgriLab model was rolled out in Malawi to co-design assistive technology, bringing together people with disabilities, facilitators and design experts. A total of 89 people took part, including 24 farmers with disabilities.
The Agri-Labs are a key component of SPARK, which aims to economically empower people with disabilities. The process draws upon their expert knowledge of their own needs and problems to design equipment, tools and work processes that are accessible and easy to use.Ā Ā
The Labs bring different actors together to work on challenges, which act as barriers to participation of people with disabilities, using a hands-on experimental approach. By combining the knowledge of people with disabilities and technical experts, it is possible to design bespoke equipment that makes work processes less labour intensive and more time efficient.Ā
In this case, the Agri-Lab tackled challenges which farmers with disabilities face at different nodes of the value chain. During the three-day sessions, the participants worked together to develop prototypes to assist with farming. These will now be tested and improved.Ā
The Programme for Rural Irrigation Development (PRIDE) ā an IFAD-funded programme working with SPARK ā rolled out the Agri-Lab model, which targeted districts in the northern and southern regions of Malawi: Chiradzulu, Zomba, Machinga and Phalombe districts (southern region of Malawi) and Chitipa, Nkhatabay and Reprimand Karonga districts (northern region of Malawi).Ā

The Labs brought together government frontline staff from the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, and farmers with disabilities.Ā
The Agri-Labs will now be expanded across the different districts throughout the northern and southern regions of Malawi, led by Disability Inclusion Facilitators. The Disability Inclusion Facilitator (DIF) Approach is a core component of the SPARK programme. It positions young people with disabilities as agents of change in rural economies in Burkina Faso, India, Malawi and Mozambique.Ā
The SPARK secretariat, the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Federation of Disability Organisations in Malawi (FEDOMA) and officials from Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfareās central office were co-facilitators of the training.Ā

