Command Agriculture new season roll out starts

17 Sep, 2017 - 02:09 0 Views
Command Agriculture new season roll out starts

The Sunday News

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Dumisani Nsingo and Munyaradzi Musiiwa, Sunday News Reporters
THE Government will in two weeks start distributing agricultural inputs under Command Agriculture to enable farmers to be fully prepared ahead of the forthcoming summer cropping amid reports that the rain season is likely to start mid next month.

This comes as it has emerged that this year even farmers that rely on rain fed cropping will also be catered for under the programme.

Last year, Command Agriculture targeted farmers near water bodies or those who had readily available water such as irrigation schemes while most rural people benefited from the Presidential Inputs Scheme.

In an interview, Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Deputy Minister Davis Marapira said Government will start distributing inputs to farmers who joined the Command Agriculture Programme by end of this month.

Deputy Minister Marapira urged farmers willing to join the scheme to register as Government intensifies preparations for the 2017/18 summer cropping season.

He said farmers who will procure inputs on their own should start purchasing as well as embarking on land preparation. Deputy Minister Marapira said indications were that the rain season was likely to start mid next month particularly in the southern region, according to the weather forecast.

“Government will start distributing Command Agriculture inputs by end of September. We are also urging farmers to start land preparation ahead of the summer cropping season. The weather forecast has predicted that the rains were likely to start mid next month. By that time we are hoping that farmers would have received their inputs and those that are independent would have purchased their inputs. We would want to surpass this year’s yield. Farmers who want to join command agriculture should also start registering now,” he said.

Deputy Minister Marapira said farmers, both independent and those that were on Command Agriculture should sell any excess grain to Grain Marketing Board (GMB) as Government moves to curb post harvest losses.

“The challenge we have is that the new model of granaries designed for communal farmers are not adequate. We want our farmers to sell all their excess grain to GMB to avoid post harvest losses,” he said.

At least 45 000 farmers have registered for maize and soya bean production under Command Agriculture Programme as preparations for the 2017/2018 summer cropping season gather momentum.

According to statistics released by Government as at 16 August 20107, a total of 173 223 hectares of irrigated and dry land had been registered for maize production by 39 714 farmers including institutions.

For soya beans, a total of 28 818 hectares of irrigated and dry land have been registered by 5 268 farmers for the same period.

The Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has received over 500 000 tonnes of maize so far from farmers who benefited under Command Agriculture and the Presidential Input Scheme last year.

Banks in partnership with the Government have mobilised a total of $334 million for the 2017 /18 agricultural season under the Command Wheat, Command Livestock, Command Fisheries and Command Wildlife programmes.

The command programmes will be complemented by the Presidential Input Scheme valued at $153,1 million to cater for about 1,8 million rural households.

Under the programme, cotton will be supported to the tune of $60 million, catering for 400 000 households with grain production taking up $52,9 million, and the $80 million will be extended to oilseed crops such as soya beans.

Meanwhile, the Government will extend its Command Agriculture Programme to farmers that rely on rain-fed cropping the season. Speaking at a field day at Chentali Irrigation Scheme in Hwange on Thursday, Matabeleland North Provincial Agritex officer Mr Dumisani Nyoni said more farmers would be included under the programme.

“This season we will have more farmers included under the Command Agriculture Programme and these include those relying on rain-fed cropping and here in Matabeleland North we have already identified farms in Matetsi area of Hwange as well as Lusulu and some parts of Lupane, Nkayi and Umguza district. Generally we will target areas that have over the years traditionally produced good yields.

“Our officers will be liaising with the farmers that will have applied to participate under the programme and ascertain their needs. The beneficiaries are obliged to take their produce to the GMB (Grain Marketing Board) where a certain percentage will be deducted as part of paying for the inputs they will have been provided with which is part of the agreement under the scheme,” Mr Nyoni said.

He said the 2016/17 season Command Agriculture Programme was a resounding success as it saw the country’s maize reserve increasing significantly.
“Here in Hwange, Lukosi, Chentali and Chezya irrigation schemes were under the Command Agriculture Programme and generally throughout the country the programme managed to achieve its target because as we speak there is sufficient maize in the country.

“Some farmers in Mashonaland region that had cropped over 200 hectares . . . and managed to get over $1 million from their harvest and here in Matabeleland North in Bubi District we also had one such farmer who cropped 200 hectares and got over 12 tonnes,” he said.

Mr Nyoni said the Government has over the years introduced a number of farming programmes as well as enhancing its irrigation infrastructure in an effort to improve the country’s food security.

“In an effort to improve the country’s food security, the Government has introduced a number of farming programmes. The Government is also in the process of constructing irrigation schemes and exploring various ways of improving efficiency and water conservative methods of irrigating and as such we now have modern irrigation equipment like centre pivots and efforts are being made to come up with irrigation schemes in areas where there are sufficient water sources,” he said.

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