HOW LOWVELD FARMERS MISS OUT ON SUBSIDISED INPUTS PROGRAMME

MPOLONJENI – There is confusion over the eligibility of Lowveld farmers for the subsidised farm inputs programme by the Ministry of Agriculture.

All along, farmers in the Lowveld have been made to believe that they were not eligible to benefit from the programme because of the unfavourable weather conditions in their region.
However, government now says all farmers are eligible for the subsidised farm inputs programme, including those in the Lowveld though none of them have actually benefited from the programme.

When the subsidised farm input programme was launched some years ago, only farmers in the Highveld, Middleveld and the Lubombo plateau were eligible to apply for subsidised farm inputs.
This was because of the conducive climate conditions in these regions, which made it possible for farmers to get a good yield.
As such, some farmers in the Lowveld never bothered to apply for subsidised inputs from their local agricultural depots.

Instead, they continuously complained of being sidelined and excluded from the subsidised farm input programme which has benefited many farmers.
“Over the years, we have only made use of the tractor service programme where we hire government tractors to cultivate our fields,” said a farmer from Mpolonjeni near Siteki.

He said each time he enquired about the other subsidised farm inputs like fertilisers and maize seeds, he was told that only farmers in the other climatic regions (and not the Lowveld) were considered for subsidised farm inputs.
Stanford  Mziyako, a  farmer from  Ngcina  area near  Mpolonjeni, said  ever since  he started  growing  sorghum many years ago, he has  never received subsidised farm inputs  from the  Ministry of Agriculture.
He hasn’t bothered to apply for thefarm inputs because he cultivates his crops in the Lowveld.

“I save money for buying the seeds and the fertilisers. Sometimes when we harvest, we keep some of it so that we can use the seeds to grow new crops in the next farming season,” he said.
Thandi Mziyako, who grows groundnuts, said she was not aware that farmers in the Lowveld were now eligible for subsidised farm inputs.
“In the past couple of years, we began growing black-eyed beans which can withstand drought conditions. We buy the seeds and the fertilisers on our own and there has been no assistance from anyone,” she said.
The two farmers appealed to government for assistance in the form of subsidised farm inputs.

They also want to be assisted in finding markets for their products.
“We do not have any market for our products, we sell in the black market,” said Stanford in jest.

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