ATASP Coord advises farmers to take flood residual advantages

The National Coordinator, Agricultural Transformation Agenda Support Program (ATASP- Phase-1) Dr. Ibrahim Arabi has admonished farmers to harness the opportunity in the soil residuals occasioned by flood to galvanise high food production for the coming dry season farming.

Dr. Ibrahim Arabi in an exclusive interview with Food Farm News said this yesterday having admitted that the 2022 flood incidences in various prone areas have wrecked many irreparable losses on farms, infrastructure and lives.

Arabi suggested that farmers must take advantage of moist soil fertility that the flood has brought to all the prone areas to embark on early dry season farming towards harnessing the great opportunity in the moist soil the incidence of flooded waters have brought to the rural areas to increase food production for year 2020-2023 dry season farming.

He pointed that farmers in the rural areas with flood affected areas should take the advantage of the moisture residuals from the incidence to increase various crops cultivation for high yield of food that could be got in the process due to the fertility of the soils against next year food surplus.

According to him ‘‘ the flood comes with residuals even though it has devastating effects that farmers can use for dry season planting to make a good production through flood residuals. Farmers in the rural communities of affected areas should seize the opportunity of these residuals from the flood to harness pumper food harvest occasioned from the soil moisture with its fertility’’.

Responding to question whether his project would increase crops cultivations to add to rice, cassava and sorghum, the ATASP coordinator said ‘’ the second phase of the project is likely to accommodate such when formal approval must have been sought and got’’

Dr. Arabi pointed that rain and flood have slowed down work progress on ATASP as many contractors are being obstructed to work optimally, saying that ‘’ the project is going on well, although the project has been slowed down because of rain and flood have disallowed them to finish their jobs’’