The number of beneficiaries under FISP, the Farmer Input Support Programme in Chadiza district is expected to increase from last year’s 14,000 to about 22,000 this year.
Chadiza District Agricultural Coordinator Kabange Masenga confirmed this to Breeze News in an interview in Chadiza.
Mr. Masenga says that this is so because the number of packs allocated to the district has also increased, giving a chance to farmers who were left out last year.
He says that the distribution exercise will commence at the end of this month.
Mr. Masenga says that his office together with the District Commissioner, George Phiri are in the process of identifying genuine beneficiaries to ensure that inputs go to the intended people.
And Mr. Masenga says that all the 21 satellite depots for FRA, the Food Reserve Agency in the district are open to farmers, who want to sell their maize to the agency.
Mr Masenga says even if FRA is struggling to buy maize in some areas, farmers are still taking their maize to some depots.
He says that his office is still making assessments on satellite depots that have not bought any maize to close them or not.