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The Small Scale Farmers Development Agency (SAFADA) has urged government to consider suspending the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) for a season in order to clean up the exercise.
SAFADA Director Boyd Moobwe said this was because the distribution of government subsidised inputs to farmers has failed to produce the desired results.
Mr. Moobwe alleged that genuine vulnerable but viable small scale farmers have not benefited from the programme saying the inputs end up in the hands of people who are capable of buying their own fertilisers and seeds.
He told ZANIS in an interview that the FISP programme has been misdirected and misused.
Mr. Moobwe said in its current form, the programme has no specific direction making it susceptible for anyone to access the inputs.
He said it was imperative that all relevant authorities discuss the performance of the programme because for the last ten years, the FISP had not been doing well.
He said even the companies which government has contracted to distribute the inputs have failed to satisfy farmers’ expectations.
Mr. Moobwe has since implored government to consult other stakeholders on how best farmers can be assisted in their day to day activities.
He explained that there was no need to fear that suspending the FISP would result in food insecurity in the country.
He said many small scale farmers, who should have been the beneficiaries of FISP, were now buying their own inputs.
Efforts to get a comment from Minister of Agriculture Emmanuel Chenda proved futile as he was reportedly attending a meeting.
