By MacPherson Mukuka in Lusaka
The National Union of Small Scale Farmers of Zambia NUSFAZ has backed Minister of Agriculture
DORA SILIYA’s call to lift the employment freeze on extension services in the
Ministry.
NUSFAZ Director General FRANK KAYULA says it is true
that there is a shortage of extension officers in the country.
Dr. KAYULA says the current ratio of extension
officer to farmers is worrisome and needs urgent attention stating that
employing more extension officers is the lasting solution.
He says it is too much for one extension officer to
be offering agriculture extension services to more than one Thousand farmers.
Dr. KAYULA has noted that it is perhaps the reason
the agriculture is not performing according to expectation.
He says sometimes the extension officer goes off the
limit and attends to about 13 thousand small scale farmers.
And Dr. KAYULA has further called on the Ministry of
agriculture to consider adopting ICT’s in the delivery of agriculture extension
information and services to farmers.
He says ICT’s have proved to be one of the effective
ways of reaching out to many people in information sharing and service
delivery.
He says although most small scale farmers do not
have access to android powered gadgets such as smart mobile phones, it is vital
that the Ministry to embark of such a venture.
He says once that is done; farmers will be
encouraged and may end up buying the gadgets for their benefit.
Last Friday,
Minister of Agriculture DORA SILIYA called for the lifting of the employment freeze on
extension services in her sector to bridge the gap between farmers and
extension officers.
MS SILIYA said
currently one extension officer provides extension services to over 1-Thousand
farmers which makes it difficult for the dissemination of extension messages to
farmers.
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