IRRIGATION: THE ONLY WAY OUT – SAFADA

THERE is currently no intervention to the current dry spells being experienced in most parts of Zambia apart from making use of the sufficient underground water, Small Scale Farmers Development Agency (SAFDA) Executive Director Boyd Moobwe has said.

Mr. Moobwe said the crusade of promoting irrigation has been ongoing but little was being done, a situation that has continued to negatively affect farmers especially with the climate change effects affecting them.

“It is sad and farmers are worried with the current drought being experienced that has left most crops dry,” Mr. Moobwe said.

He urged the Government to also consider drilling of boreholes as another intervention in dealing with the current drought situation adding that putting up dams was also a key factor that could help address the drought situation.

He called on the Government to venture into technology and emulate Zimbabwe -based farmers who he said were currently using technology that required minimum water use and were not experiencing any problems with crops taking only about 3 to 4 months to grow and were doing very well.

“We are behind in technology yet this situation is negatively affecting the nation and needs to be addressed urgently. Farmers are currently financially handicapped as they invested everything in farming, which has responded negatively,” he said.

“We are looking forward to stakeholders assisting farmers that have been negatively hit by the dry spells”, he added.

He noted that if the current drought situation was not addressed, it would negatively affect the country’s economy and that citizens risked being food insecure. He urged farmers to consider venturing into off season farming to avoid such unfortunate occurrences.

He said that it was important for the Government to engage relevant stakeholders and farmers in finding lasting solutions to manage issues like drought.