Agriculture authorities in Mkushi District have saluted the private sector for complementing Government efforts in consolidating agriculture diversification amongst small-scale farmers.
Mkushi District Senior Agriculture Officer(SAO) Patrick Mutale stated this whilst overseeing the delivery of village chicken empowerment by the Alejo Community Support Program(ACSP).
Mr. Mutale said that efforts to encourage agriculture diversification amongst small-scale farmers has been a consistent plea from Government, adding that NGOs(Non-Governmental Organisations) such as Alejo are helping these efforts.
He disclosed that the District had received a total of 4,500 chicks in the latest delivery, saying that this had now completed the target set for catering for 11,600 beneficiaries in 6 Months.
He said that his office had been collaborating with the Department of Community Development in conducting Chicken management training for the beneficiaries, who are drawn from all the 37 agriculture camps in the District.
Mr. Mutale noted that the program would have positive impact on agriculture diversification, as well as restocking the supply of village chicken in both urban and remote parts of Mkushi.
One beneficiary, Maxwell Chinungwe of Masansa observed that the development is crucial to the efforts involved in mitigating household poverty amongst small holder farmers at individual and cooperative levels.
Mr. Chinungwe also noted that the program is also yielding positive results in adding to the supply of village chickens in the area, saying that the supply for this commodity had shrunk over the past 3 years.
He commended Government departments of Community development and Agriculture Office for facilitations, and extended the praise to Alejo Community Support Project for implementation of this project.
According to data obtained from Community development office, 11,600 beneficiaries composed of individuals as well as cooperative and clubs, have been linked to this program within the past 6 Months.
Village chickens near extinction and had to restock with hybrid village chicken 2.0?? Wow na dabwa zoona. People eat the chickens and eggs no life cycle. PF really messed us up. Keep the old chicken hens alive. Even chickens have lost history, in other countries they boast about having indigenous fauna. For us we have BBQ all our meat.