Subsidised fertilisers programme off to a good start

Malawi’s Secretary for Agriculture and Food Security, Andrew Daudi, on Wednesday said that he had so far received 130,000 metric tonnes of fertilisers from an initial order of 170,000 metric tones, representing a deficit of 40,000 metric tonnes of the subsidised fertilisers for poor smallholder farmers.

He said the subsidised fertilisers will be distributed to the poor and the underpriviledged farmers in the country through the use of a coupon system distributed by local village chiefs.

"The exercise of coupon distribution has already started in all the districts of the country after identifying those people who are eligible to receive the subsidised fertilisers from government and it is going on well," he said.

He said the government’s aim was to improve smallholder productivity, food and cash crop production and reduce vulnerability to food insecurity and hunger among the society.

Malawi has achieved maize bumper yields for three years in a row after subsidising fertilisers and other farm inputs.--APA