Maravi

Inputs support hasn’t helped farmers, says clergyman

Inputs support hasn’t helped farmers, says clergyman
By George Zulu
Thu 10 Feb. 2011, 04:00 CAT

THE Farmer Input Support Programme has failed to address the challenges farmers are facing in ensuring food security, according to a Monze clergyman.

Fr Spencer Nyendwa said the delay in the distribution of inputs, poor marketing strategies coupled with poor roads and storage infrastructure had worked against maintaining the country’s food security.

He said it was not healthy for the country to fail to manage the crop at the time other parts of the world were experiencing food shortages.

“It is saddening that we have failed to manage the bumper harvest. We have also taken a wrong route to distributing inputs to our small-scale farmers,” Fr Nyendwa said in an interview on Tuesday.

He said Zambia had favourable agriculture conditions, which needed to be utilised.

“We have not finished the distribution of fertiliser, both top dressing and basal. Our farmers are crying and some have ended up losing out on both their money and time and this is what this government needs to change,” he said.

Fr Nyendwa said the Catholic Church was running programmes to empower small-scale farmers in rural areas through the distribution of farming inputs such as seed and fertiliser for the small farming rural community.

“We have seen a great need for government to increase and monitor this Farmer Input Support Programme closely in order for it to be sustaining and more active. They should not only wait for the rain season but also to invest in irrigation in view of economic development in the agriculture sector,” said Fr Nyendwa.

Labels: FISP, MONZE

posted by MrK @ 7:40 AM