farmer |
Farmers here have
started receiving additional inputs for the 2017-18 summer cropping
season to ease input shortages which resulted in reduced hectarage for
maize, while in some areas they failed to beat the planting deadline.
Minister of State
for Midlands Provincial Affairs Owen Ncube said the province had started
receiving more inputs that are already being distributed at GMB depots
across the province.
A snap survey by
The Herald established that farmers in Gokwe North received inputs,
particularly fertiliser, last week. Farmers received seed on time last
year, but fertiliser shortage was the major setback. Minister Ncube said
there was a lot of progress in terms of fertiliser distribution.
"We are happy
because we are now receiving additional inputs that are being
distributed throughout the province. We believe that our farmers were
not seriously affected because most practice dry planting and late onset
of the rains has proved to be a blessing in disguise," he said.
"The inputs will go
a long way in ensuring that farmers get optimal yield if we receive
normal rains." Zimbabwe Fertiliser Manufacturers Association chairperson
Mr Tapiwa Mashingaidze said fertiliser companies recently imported
fertiliser after receiving a substantial amount of foreign currency from
the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
"We have imported a
significant amount of fertiliser for this summer cropping season after
we received a substantial amount of foreign currency from RBZ," he said.
"Fertiliser should
have been distributed to farmers earlier because for those using
irrigation, we are already in the mid-season where most crops are
starting to mature. The advantage is only for those on dry land because
the rains delayed and only started coming towards the end of last month.
For those on dry land, there is time and they can still catch up.
"Our national
consumption of fertiliser every season is around 400 000 tonnes, but we
have so far released more than 300 000 tonnes to the market. We are
still to compile information to ascertain the actual amount of imported
fertiliser." In Midlands, Government distributed two percent of the
required ammonium nitrate and 15 percent of basal fertiliser to Command
Agriculture farmers for the 2017-18 summer cropping season before the
importation of fertiliser.
The province
contracted 8 529 farmers under Command Agriculture requiring 11 000
tonnes of both basal and top dressing fertilisers this season.
Government last month announced that it had distributed 75 percent of
farming inputs under the Presidential Input Support Scheme and about 50
percent under Command Agriculture this summer cropping season.
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