By: Haruna Kuyateh
A renowned farmer, Alagie Modou Touray and Alagie Tijan Touray from Maka Farafenni of Upper Badibou have called on the government to increase tractors allocation to farmers to enhance their production and productivity.
Speaking to The Voice at Maka Farafenni Alagie Modou Touray a registered member of the National Seed Secretariat (NSS) said the food production has increased on a large scale, noting that 7ha of maize, 4ha of millet, 10ha of groundnut, and 1 ha for seed multiplication for GIRAV project. The government provided high-quality fertilizer, maize, and groundnut, he added.
He said the initiative was taken by the NSS in contributing immensely to strengthening farmers’ capacity in the multiplication of improved seeds.
Both of the farmers disclosed that the absence of tractors in the area resulted in high dependency on tractors coming from Senegal of which over D500,000 was spent on plowing service. However, they commended the government for the timely delivery of inputs.
Alagie Tijan Touray used the moment to launch a request for more support in the form of millet and maize threshers to address post-harvest losses. He noted that farming is a lucrative business and therefore called for more investment in agriculture. In addition, he called on people to promote food production to attain household food security.
