OTUKE-At least six farmers’ cooperative societies in Otuke district are recruiting more farmers to boost the production of oil seeds such as sunflower, soybeans, simsim, and rice next year.
The cooperatives which include Okwang, Acan Kwoilwete, Olilim Acan Kwete, Orum Joint, East Lango, and Adwari Area Enterprise cooperatives are calling upon farmers in the district to participate in the revival of the cooperatives which collapsed decades ago.
John Opio, the chairperson Acan Kwoilwete Cooperative in Ogwete Sub-county, Otuke district said the production of crops was low this year due to prolonged drought but they expect it to shoot up in the next planting season starting in 2023.
“Our target is to attract more farmers to boost production, have a strong bargaining power and ask the Government to build for us more storage facilities,” Opio said.
The chairperson Olilim Acan Kwete Cooperative in Olilim town council, Macdonald Akwar said their aim is to organise farmers into groups to increase production.
He said increasing household income through agricultural practices, and securing clean seeds for planting among others are some of their aims.
He said their projections in the first and second seasons of 2023 for sunflower is 700 tonnes, rice 400 tonnes, soybeans 650 tonnes, and simsim 450 tonnes.
He said the cooperatives started with only 30 members in 2017 but now it has grown to 628 with males taking more shares.
“We expect the number to reach 1000 members by 2023 because as I talk now 31 farmers groups are operating under our cooperatives,” he said.
Max Ojok, the chairperson Orum Joint Cooperative said farmers recently faced challenges with some sunflower seeds which did not germinate well.
He said they received the seeds NAADs, prepared the fields, and planted but less than 30 percent germinated.
The Otuke senior agricultural officer, Boney Ocen, said the greater percentage of farmers are farming cooperatives because they have started realising the benefits.
https://thecooperator.news/govt-offers-seeds-to-cooperatives-in-lango-and-acholi-regions/
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