MMD Chiba Ward Councilor Pilate Chilambe has advised small scale farmers to diversify their produce in order to avoid the high costs of conventional agricultural inputs that go into maize cultivation.
Mr. Chilambe said small scale farmers each year continue producing inadequate food because of high costs of fertilisers which are also in short supply. He advised the affected farmers to cultivate crops which do not use conventional fertilisers in order to improve on food production in rural areas where fertiliser is unaffordable to the majority of them.
The ward Councilor suggested that the small scale farmers instead grow Cassava, Finger millet, Ground nuts, beans and many other crops that do not need fertiliser.
Mr. Chilambe observed that small scale farmers do not manage to produce enough food because they depend on the subsidised Government Fertiliser Support Programme (FSP) which has not been supplied accordingly.
He said the Government may not manage to provide subsidised fertilisers to all small scale farmers in the nation but farmers should focus on crops that are not expensive to produce. He added that the global economic crisis should be faced in a level headed manner by planning to produce enough food crops with less input costs to sustain families and the nation at large.
Mr. Chilambe urged the Government to provide fertilisers to small scale farmers in cooperatives in good time to encourage improved food production in the nation.
ZANIS/AP/ENDS/MM.
I hate the word diversification. ~X(
Has this ward councillor himself diversified? Akamba chabe. This is easier said than done!!
I remember some time back people in Katete diversified immensely into growing paprika. Then wowwww….. they had to start buying maize with the same money they sold paprika for as they had nothing to eat. So what is the best way to go for diversification??
I remember some time back in Katete people diversified immensely into growing paprika. Then they had to start buying maize with the same money they sold paprika for as they had nothing to eat. So what is the best way to go for diversisification to be effective?
” Then they had to start buying maize with the same money they sold paprika for as they had nothing to eat. So what is the best way to go for diversisification to be effective? ”
They need to have more land under cultivation. That means comprehensive agrarian reform, where people own more land, mechanisation, small scale irrigation.
The real diversification is for the economy as a whole, from exporting raw materials into agriculture, infrastructure and manufacturing.
The government needs to tax the heck out of the mines, and create works projects to create infrastructure.
It needs a comprehensive industrialisation and manufacturing policy, where the only place for Foreign Direct Investment is to be used as a customer for Zambian SME manufactured goods and raise wages.
#4, Good analysis,
but the land has become an issue and I can give you an example, near Katete there used to be a big village along great east road called Azeleguze. This village is no more as people have gone to live in far bushes looking for fertile land and so many families have been displaced in the long run.Govt should help the people to clear land for free, then maybe comprehensive agrarian revolution can be realised…
After all it is the people who decide what is best for them. You can not dictate ton the people what they should grow or sale.
It is the market ( demand and supply) that keeps the ball rolling.
Improve agric extention services before you can talk about diversification.