14 Apr 2021

The Assistant Minister of Agricultural Development and Food Security Ms Beauty Manake has explained that she has never said farmers could benefit from the Integrated Support Programme for Arable Agriculture Development (ISPAAD) tractor subsidy without registration, since registration was done annually.

Responding to a parliamentary question from Sefhare-Ramokgonami, MP, Dr Kesitegile Gobotswang, the assistant minister said farmers who did not register with their extension agent did not qualify for inputs and draught power subsidies under the programme.

She said registration was not for seed acquisition only, but for other assistance available under the programme.

Ms Manake said there were no corrective measures for assisting farmers who did not register for the 2021 cropping season.

“However, if savings are realised towards the end of the season then consideration might be made to assist them,” she said.

She advised farmers to register for the upcoming season to enable them to benefit from any support envisaged under the new programme the government was currently developing.

Dr Gobotswang had asked the minister if he was aware that contrary to assurances made in Parliament during the last sitting, farmers who did not register for seeds were not allowed to benefit from ISPAAD tractor subsidy.

He asked the minister to further state what she was planning to do to remedy the predicaments farmers and tractor owners found themselves in.

The MP also asked the minister whether he would consider extending tractor subsidy to affected farmers considering that the implementation of ISPAAD during 2020/21 cropping season was impacted by COVID-19 and uncertainties associated with the transition from the current to the revised ISPAAD programme. ENDS