KWANIA –Farmers in Kwania district have been advised to embrace the growing of perennial crops which earn more money for households than seasonal crops.
According to Paskweli Otoo, the executive director of Owiny Agro Innovation Centre in Angic village, Ayabi Sub-county, farmers should not only engage in producing seasonal crops such as maize, beans, soybeans, and sunflower but migrate to perennial crops such as coffee and banana.
Otoo, a retired civil servant who worked with National Water and Sewerage Corporation as a quality control manager in charge of Lira area, grows pineapples, banana, and trees planting on a 20- acre piece of land.
Otoo said after retiring from civil service in 2017, he was motivated to start farming to improve his household income but also encouraged more people in the area to embrace farming.
“I got interested when President Museveni visited Lango Sub-region and encouraged people to engage in commercial farming using a-four acre model,” Otoo said.
Otoo says he has also opened a nursery and primary school [Kachung Junior] in Dokolo district, using some of the proceeds from his farm, trained farmers on commercial farming, and established water for irrigation infrastructure on his farm.
He said other enterprises the farmers should adopt are beekeeping, poultry, and fish farming which, he said can make farmers earn a reasonable income.
He urged government to supply farmers with irrigation technologies as one of the ways to fight climate change in the country.
Immaculate Akullo, a beekeeper advised farmers to desist from only relying on seasonal crops since they can be affected by climate change.
Recently, Kilak North Member of Parliament Anthony Akol who doubles as chairperson Acholi Parliamentary Group [APG] urged his colleagues from the sub-region to rally farmers to embrace the growing of perennial crops.
Akol said that most of the crops that the farmers in the region grow have a three-month maturity period, and don’t fetch much compared to perennial crops like coffee.
According to Akol, APG has reached an agreement with government to supply seeds and seedlings for perennial crops such as Hass avocado, palm oil, and coffee among others.
https://thecooperator.news/mp-akol-roots-for-perennial-crops-in-acholi-sub-region/
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