NORTHWEST TO GET INPUTS DIRECTLY FROM SUPPLIERS
NORTH-WESTERN province has been chosen as one of the areas that will not use the e-voucher system in the supply of the farm inputs in the 2019/2020 farming season.
This means that all farmers will be getting inputs directly from suppliers unlike in the past when they were getting the inputs from agro-dealers.
North-western province Senior Marketing e elopment ffi er in the ministry of Agriculture Dennis Munachusa told the Daily Nation in an interview that there would be no e-voucher system as farmers in all districts would get inputs directly from suppliers.
Government, he said, had realised that Northwestern province along with Copperbelt, Muchinga, Norther and Luapula were still receiving favourable rain.
‘‘As a province we have been chosen as one of the provinces that will go for the direct farm input supply. Which simply means we are going to do away with the e-voucher system in the 2019/2020 farming season,’’ he said. Mr Munachusa said Government would ensure that provinces that still enjoyed good rainfall pattern were supported in the production of agriculture products. He said Government had engaged Nyimba Investment to supply both D-compound and Urea fertilisers while various seed companies would supply the seed for the 2019/2020 farming season. Mr Munachusa urged farmers to pay up the farmer’s contributions towards the input supply before the end of this month to enable them get the inputs on time. And Solwezi District Framers Association, Marian Kalala said the initiative would enable farmers get the inputs on time, thereby increasing production. ‘’We as farmers in the district are grateful in that we will be getting the inputs directly from the suppliers unlike the way we used to get the inputs from the third parties,’’ she added.