By Kefiloe Kajane
The newly sworn-in minister of agriculture and food security, Nkaku Kabi, this week promised farmers that his ministry is doing all in its power to give them fertilisers within seven days.
This is the subsidised manure that farmers buy from the ministry of agriculture and food security.
Kabi said he learned from the ministry’s officials about the challenges that farmers face in supply of the commodity. He said the fertilisers saga has been going on since 2018 and that it was about time that it comes to an end.
He said he has instructed the ministry’s officials to halt the sale of manure. This, he added, was to allow for increased collection of the product so that farmer will be able to buy.
“The issue we have is that the supply or the contractor that supplies us is very slow. He delivers four trucks of manure per week which has 680 of manure bags. It a small quantity because there is a very high demand.
“We are also currently waiting for the ministry of finance to replay to our request to buy more manure. This is because this financial year the ministry of agriculture and food security was given money to buy 4 500 tons of manure. Which is not much because last year the ministry was given money to buy 9 000 tons of manure. So we are waiting for that money and we were promised that it is either we are going to be given letter of credit of warranty,” Kabi.
Kabi further indicated that to meet the high demand of farmers who come to buy fertilizers, the ministry will increase paying posts so that people so not find themselves in long ques.
This comes after the ministry of agriculture and food security introduced the seed and fertilizers subsidy to all Basotho farmers.
Meanwhile Kabi also promised that his ministry will also pay the wool and mohair farmers soon. He said his ministry soon will announce the dates which it will go to districts where there are farmers who are still not paid.
“We are going to go with the soldiers because we are going to be paying those farmers cash. We will work with the ministry of small business development, cooperatives and marketing on the dates and we will make the announcement,” he said.
