Lilongwe-based multi-faceted entrepreneur and innovator Emmanuel Thungula Phiri is slowly making a name for himself in the agricultural sector after setting up a manufacturing company that specialises in making agricultural machineries.
Thungula-Phiri, 33, a holder of a Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Food Science from the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), is the Director, lead engineer and owner of E&D Investments, a company based in Malangalanga, Lilongwe.
Registered in 2020, the company has become one of the country’s leading producers and suppliers of machineries such as peanut butter making machines, pop corn making machines, sugarcane crushers, swan branded freezes and water sealing machine, just to mention a few.
Phiri has told ProjectM that he established the company after growing frustrated with the hunt for a job opportunity and difficulties farmers were facing after harvesting their crops.
“A lot of Malawians depend on agriculture but with a few making profits on the markets due to lack of affordable processing machines that will enable them to increase their productivity and make more profits through value addition and I saw an opportunity in that,” he said.
With a workforce of 7 workers, the company has made it its priority to produce high quality agricultural machinery capable of competing on the international market.
“We sell and supply countrywide, and the potential is there for us to start selling them outside the country,” said Phiri.
Meanwhile, Phiri has indicated that his goal is to become the leading manufacturer and distributer of food processing machines and technologies in Malawi and beyond.
Chrissy Longweni, a Lilongwe-based shop owner has hailed Phiri’s machine calling them reliable, good quality and simple to use.
