The Sunday Mail
Livingstone Marufu
GOVERNMENT has started distributing inputs for the summer cropping season and planting has progressed in some provinces as the country seeks to build on the bumper harvest of 2016-17.
The State has secured US$487 million worth of seeds, fertilisers, agri-chemicals and fuel under the Presidential Inputs Support Scheme and Command Agriculture.
Last year, Command Agriculture targeted commercial farmers near water bodies or those with irrigation facilities while households benefited from the Presidential Inputs Support Scheme.
This season, those without irrigation facilities are included in the Special Maize Import Substitution Programme, commonly referred to as Command Agriculture.
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Deputy Minister (Crops) Davison Marapira said: “Some farmers under Command Agriculture have started getting inputs like lime, seed and diesel for tillage purposes and this will give our farmers enough time to plan efficiently.
“In some provinces farmers with irrigation facilities have already planted their first crop under the Command programme.
Deputy Minister Marapira said Government — through district and provincial Agritex officers — was still signing up farmers under Command Agriculture and at least 100 000 have registered for maize and soyabean production.
According to statistics released by Government a fortnight ago, 200 000 hectares of irrigated and dry land have been registered for maize production by over 45 000 farmers and institutions.
Financial institutions, in partnership with Government, have mobilised US$334 million for Command Wheat, Livestock, Fisheries and Wildlife.
The Presidential Inputs Support Scheme is supported to the tune of US$153,1 million and will cater for about 1,8 million rural households.
