An Agriculture Research Institute has anticipated increased maize production this year compared to last year, owing to the timely distribution of farming inputs and the good rainfall being experienced.
Speaking in an interview with Money FM News, Kaypro Research Institute Executive Director Dr Frank Kayula said it is also expected that with the good rains the country may record a bumper harvest.
“With the good rains that we have and knowing that farming inputs have been distributed already in many parts of the country we expect production of maize to go up,” Dr Kayula said.
And Dr. Kayula has called on government to accelerate the restructuring of the Farmers Input Support Program (FISP) so that it is handed to the private sector to manage.
He notes that once FISP is restructured, the farmer market relationship will be on contract basis, a situation that will allow farmers to earn more from their farming activities.
“A structured market will allow farmers in the country to earn more from their activities, because they will have a ready market for their goods even before crops are harvested,” he said.
Dr. Kayula has since advised the government to fulfil all promises made to the Agriculture sector last year, among them the need to manufacturer tractors in the country, and the need to have a structured market for farmers.
“And we are hoping that promises that have been made to the Agriculture sector in the past including the production of tractors in the country and restructuring of the market will be fulfilled by government, ” he said.
He further said 2020 had not been a good year for farmers in terms of having access to the market, because they were blocked from exporting their crops.
Dr. Kayula explains that despite experiencing a good rain fall in 2020 as compared to the previous farming seasons, crop production among farmers remained very low.