Transformation Tuesday: Kalongo Chitengi

Welcome to another #TransformationTuesday where we share stories from our local entrepreneurs. Research clearly shows that when Africa’s female farmers thrive, everyone benefits; from the women themselves, the children they care for, the communities they feed, and the economies in which they contribute. This week we are profiling Kalongo Chitengi who is the General Manager at AGCO Zambia since March 2019. Kalongo plays a strategic leadership role to ensure efficient management of the Martin Richenhagen Future Farm training and learning Centre.

AGCO has partnered with initiatives such as Africa Food360 Accelerator, focusing on empowering female agro-processors and farmers to be able to address challenges such as nutrition, climate change, food security and sustainable markets in the African food systems. So what services and support does AGCO offer to Zambians? With AGCO’s training facilities and online courses, they can give any interested Zambian everything they need to achieve a thriving agribusiness success.

“At the Martin Richenhagen Future Farm we provide classroom and online training for aspiring farmers across Zambia. With the latest solutions in agriculture and the understanding of successful farming techniques, we can help you maximise your land, support your community and have a financially rewarding future in farming. By empowering a new-generation of farmers, agro-dealers and agropreneurs, together we can make agriculture across Zambia and Africa more sustainable and ultimately, more profitable.” says Katongo.

Kalongo brings over twenty-five years work experience in the private, state enterprises and nongovernmental organisations at senior management level. She has worked extensively on rural agriculture, environmental, community development, and infrastructure development programmes in Zambia and across the continent. Prior to her current position with AGCO, Kalongo was the country director of Self Help Africa in Zambia. She was the first woman to take the role of director of an African country programme within the Self Help Africa group.

Kalongo is a Ph. D candidate (Rhodes University) 2019 – 2023): Research on Transformative learning in Agriculture and Agrobiodiversity, holds an MBA from the University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom. She is a LEAD Fellow in Sustainable Development (Population Nexus, Environment and Development.

She is the 2016 Regional and Country winner (Southern Africa) in Welfare and Civil Society Organisations sector of the CEO Global Africa’s Most Influential Women in Business and Government Awards.