Maputo, 19 Aug (AIM) – The Mozambican government’s agricultural plan is budgeted at two billion US dollars, said the Minister of Planning and Development, Salim Valá, speaking to reporters during his working visit to areas hit by floods in the southern province of Gaza.
The minister explained that the four years project is aimed at increasing productivity, especially among small-scale producers, “but also in the most promising value chains.”
“The project will support agricultural activities of over two million producers Lower Limpopo irrigation schemes in Gaza as priority areas for intervention, with a range of measures planned simultaneously, from agricultural extension and research to producer financing, the use of improved seeds, manure, fertilizers and pesticides, as well as agricultural mechanization and irrigation, with the aim of establishing scientifically based farming”, he said, cited by the Portuguese News Agency, LUSA.
On 14 July, Mozambican businesspeople called for small-scale producers to have access to information and education systems, arguing that these are essential to facilitate digital transformation in Mozambique’s agricultural sector.
Mohamed Adam, who heads the Innovation, Digital Transformation and Social Communication portfolio at the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA), speaking at the 21st Annual Private Sector Conference, advocated introducing services to improve information available to farmers, particularly on storms and pests, as well as services aimed at educating them.
Adilson Gomes, president of the Digital Transformation and Innovation Agency (ATDI), citing data from Mozambique’s Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries, said 70 percent of Mozambique’s population depends on agriculture, while lamenting that the sector contributes only 25 percent to the national economy, which he attributed to the State’s limited ability to identify citizens.
Am/
