Andrew
Online Reporter
More than 273 000 new farmers joined cotton farming over the past seven years owing to Government’s input support scheme, Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Deputy Minister Vangelis Haritatos has said.
He said this on Monday while officiating at Cottco’s rebranding event in the capital.
The Presidential Input Support Scheme for cotton was launched in 2015 at a time when farmers were facing viability challenges due to poor yields and low producer prices.
“From the 2022 marketing season, Government directed that cotton farmers receive 75 percent of their production income in United States dollars against lint exports.
“In addition to the input support, Government provided a price subsidy to cotton farmers of $1,5 billion in 2020 and a further $2 billion in 2021 in order to improve farmer viability,” said Deputy Minister Haritatos.
Government, he added, had established the ‘Agriculture4She’ desk to cater for women, the majority of whom play a significant role in cotton production.
Tinaye Agere
Online Reporter