By SHERRY CHABALA
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) Northern Province youth secretary, Chanda Nsofu has advised the government against ending the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) and replacing it with the Comprehensive Agriculture Transformation Programme.
In a statement to Millennium TV, Mr Nsofu warned that loans will lead farmers into a debt trap, which could make them lose their produce, livestock and poultry to creditors.
Mr Nsofu said farmers faced a high risk of falling into unsustainable debt as compared to civil servants who earn a monthly salary.
He added that traders who accessed marketeer booster loans from the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) were failing to pay back the money due to the high cost of living and cost of doing business.
Mr Nsofu explained that farmers were incurring huge losses due to climate change induced drought and floods and that loans would further expose them to more losses.
He added that FISP had proved to be an effective social protection measure as it saved families from starvation, enabled the vulnerable to buy medicines and educate their children.
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