By JAMES KUNDA –
THE Government has delivered more than 100,000 tonnes of Urea fertiliser to small-scale farmers countrywide, Agriculture and Livestock Permanent Secretary David Shamulenge has said.
Mr Shamulenge said in an interview yesterday that only a minor consignment of 1,000 tonnes of the commodity was yet to reach the selected farmers.
He said the Government procured 103,000 tonnes of Urea from Saudi Arabia for delivery to one million small-scale farmers under the 2014/2015 Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP).
“Arrangements are in place to ensure that by the end of this week, the remaining districts receive their consignment of Urea,” said Mr Shamulenge, who attributed the delayed deliveries to logistical challenges.
He said Government had also reimbursed stocks of Compound-D fertiliser that were stolen from storage sheds in Mansa and Rufunsa districts.
“The manner in which these items went missing is still being handled by investigative wings and very soon, a report will be submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture,” he said.
Meanwhile, Government will soon issue policy direction on the use of the e-voucher system and the implementation of the 2015/2016 FISP.
. Lubinda
Mr Shamulenge said Agriculture and Livestock Minister Given Lubinda would soon inform the nation if Government will pilot the e-voucher and how the FISP will be handled.
The e-voucher is an electronic system of acquiring farming inputs.
