Some farmers in Choma district in Southern Province have complained of late distribution of basal dressing fertilizer.
The farmers said their maize crop might go to waste due to lack of adequate fertilizer to cater for all the farmers in the area.
Penson Siamuungwa, a farmer from Kasizi village, said the late distribution of the commodity might affect the 2013/14 farming season.
Mr. Siamuungwa told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka that most farmers have planted their maize but due to lack of basal dressing fertilizer, their maize crop may be not grow well thereby affecting their yields.
And Chilundu Ziba said if nothing is done quickly by government, the area might experience hunger this year.
Mr. Ziba stated that government should prepare well enough to avoid the late distribution of farming input in Zambia.
He noted that the agriculture sector is a pillar of any country’s economy hence the need for government to invest heavily in the industry
But Agriculture and Livestock Minister Robert Sichinga, has directed the Choma District Agriculture Coordinating Officer (DACO) to ensure that the distribution of farming inputs to farmers in the district is commenced before the end of this week.
Mr. Sichinga said the government was determined to advance the agricultural sector in order to enhance national food security through continued timely distribution of farming inputs.
He said Choma district had so far received 16,979 by 50 kilogramme bags of D-compound fertilizer from Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ).
He has therefore urged the district administrative office to commence the distribution of the commodity as soon as possible.
ZANIS
I now humbly (hopefully) advise the Honourable Bob Sichinga who we have known from the days of ZCCM through UPND vice to many other things. But this one thing is most important for your life: distribute fertliser and other inputs. People in 2014 will literally eat grass if this is not done. I am not politicking. In my little life, I have never seen hunger loom so large over our horizons. And I sincerely hope, I am wrong and completely out of pace as the east is from the west. I will be most delighted if the sceptre of disaster I am seeing stoking Zambia never ever comes to pass to avoid calamity.
I doubt they were just keeping the fertiliser. if he is having to say the obvious, then there must be a bigger problem somewhere. My theory is ; he (Sichinga) is that problem.
you r very fanny, ati’ My theory is ; he (Sichinga) is that problem.
Sichinga is not a farmer or a proper manager for that matter. He has failed the farmers big time, by design or by accident.
Honestly, this is being irresponsible . How do you distribute bassal fertiliser so late when this could have been done way back may be in September or October ? By the way, how many people in the PF government own farms and they themselves are rated among the most critical farmers in the country starting from the head of state himself? If nobody, no wonder we have got these irregularities because they do not even know the reasonable time when fertiliser is sopposed to be distributed to the farmers. Very soon, they will start distributing the commodity around February or March and insist on a bumper harvest.
When Sichinga was transferred to agriculture ministry he was very quick and happy to apologise for Chenda’s mess in the previous farming season thinking he would do better. Now we know its donchi kubeba and bufi all the way.
Does he even know what he is suppose to do.
Since the planting season is over, for what use is Sichinga trying to distribute fertilizers in Southern Province?
In the most productive parts of Zambia farmers have not been paid for maize purchased by FRA. The productive areas in terms of agriculture are Central (Mkushi, Mumbwa) Copperbelt (Mpongwe), Southern and Eastern Provinces. Siching is merely on panic mode as cost of food will be very high in 2014 due to PF failures.
Do we have fertiliser to distribute?
DACO CHOMA