ECL CHEERS FARMERS OVER TAX INITIATIVE

By KETRA KALUNGAFARMERS are happy with President Edgar Lungu’s pronouncement that Government will work with farmer unions to revisit certain taxes to address the challenges hindering the growth of the agriculture sector. President Lungu said last Wednesday when he toured Tara Farms in Kabwe, that Government would engage farmer unions to revisit some taxes to mitigate the challenges farmers were facing.Small Scale Farmers For Development Agency executive director, Boyd Moobwe, said in an interview that revisiting certain taxes would enable farmers produce enough to meet demand.Mr Moobwe said with the right incentives in place, farmers would be able to have enough maize, potatoes and onions among other crops to supply throughout the year as they would be able to invest.“The President spoke well, there is no way we can be importing potatoes and onions when we have got farmers and enough land. The weather pattern is conducive, once farmers are provided with the necessary incentive, they will be able to produce enough to meet the demand,” he said.Mr Moobwe said farmers were confident that Government would address all the challenges because an example was already set through distributing farm inputs on time.He said farmers were pleased with the political will demonstrated by Government in addressing the challenges facing farmers both on a small and large scale.“This government has set an example, for the first time in history if not by mistake, they have distributed fertiliser on time, this shows that things will be okay in the next five years,” Mr Moobwe said.