Farmers in the Southern part who will plough after 31 of January, 2014 will not qualify for Integrated Support Programme for Arable Agricultural Development (ISPAAD) payments in accordance with government regulations despite the current drought in the region.
“I think farmers in the Southern region knows quite well when ploughing season in the region ends and we will make sure it is carried out,” said Geofrey Pheko, Public Relations Officer in Ministry of Agriculture.
In the northern part of the country which has been receiving considerable amount of rainfall since the start of raining season, Pheko said the deadline is 15 February.
He explained that the deadlines in the two regions differ as the ploughing season in the southern part of the country starts earlier than in the northern part of the country.
In addition to that, Pheko said that if fields are ploughed later than 31 January in the southern parts of the country, crops are very likely to be affected by winter before they had matured as winter starts earlier in southern part of the country as compared to the northern part.
