ZNFU to support 1,000 South farmers

ZNFU southern regional manager Emmanuel Sinyangwe said the targeted farmers were expected to cultivate 2,700 hectares of maize and 500 hectares of soya beans.
In an interview in Choma recently, he said out of the 1,000 farmers, 700 were from Choma and Kalomo districts, while 300 were from Livingstone and Kazungula districts.
“This year, it is our second year of cultivating soya beans under the Lima programme and it will run as a pilot project.
“This is so because we want the best of it and last year, we did not get the expected results due to drought,” he said.
He said the numbers of farmers to be supported under the soya beans programme would not increase this year because it was still running on a pilot project basis.
Mr Sinyangwe said the farmers had since paid up to 90 per cent of their cash collateral towards the loans for the next farming seasons.
He said under the Lima credit programme, farmers would pay K1,300 each as cash collateral towards the loan for farming inputs to be used on a one hectare piece of land.
He said the same K1,300 cash collateral also consisted of an insurance policy.