The United Kwacha Alliance (UKA) has urged government to quickly and urgently complete the delivering of farming inputs to all farmers and ensure that the e-voucher system is working effectively for all contracted Agro dealers.
UKA says early delivery in inputs will help revamp the agriculture sector, cushion the food deficit the country has experienced for the past 3 years and allow farmers to increase their households incomes.
UKA Chairperson Communications, Jackson Silavwe, told RCV News in a statement in Lusaka today that ZESCO’s erratic electricity supply has not only affected the productivity of Zambian industries, but it has also had a severe knock-on effect on agriculture.
Mr. Silavwe said in the rural areas especially for the small-scale farmers, this means reduced yields and for commercial farmers, days lost for irrigation and systems halted.
“When crops fail, it is not just the farmer who suffers, the consumer too feels the weight of scarcity of food which results into higher prices for our staple food,” said Mr. Silavwe.
He has demanded government to support farmers this farming season as the Country anticipates good rainfall as predicted by the meteorological department for this 2024/2025 farming season.
Meanwhile, Mr. Silavwe said once voted into power UKA will prioritize food security through empowering the small scale farmers with mechanization and irrigation systems for all the year round agriculture production and promote the integrated market access to inputs and output markets through value addition among other priorities.
By Margaret Mwanza
