Farmers Union Chief Appreciates Govt Decision On Fertiliser Subsidy
National Farmers Union (NFU) president Surendra Lal says he appreciates the initiative by Government to continue with the fertiliser subsidy. This was after the Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum made the Revised 2021-2022 National Budget announcement on Thursday night.
Sunday 27 March 2022 | 18:06
National Farmers Union president Surendra Lal in Labasa. Photo: Shratika Naidu
National Farmers Union (NFU) president Surendra Lal says he appreciates the initiative by Government to continue with the fertiliser subsidy.
This was after the Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum made the Revised 2021-2022 National Budget announcement on Thursday night.
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum explained that the pre-COVID fertiliser was about $45 per bag and now it was more than $80 per bag.
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“It would crush our cane farmers to bear this burden without their Government’s support, so we are happy to step in to cover that entire price increase,” he said.
“That means, despite all this volatility, farmers will still pay $20 per bag of fertiliser and the Government will pay the remaining $60.
“This will be through an additional $9.7 million provided to the Ministry of Sugar Industry under the Fertiliser Subsidy Programme to support the procurement of fertiliser by South Pacific Fertiliser Limited.”
Mr Lal, who has been the president of NFU for more than a decade, said farmers were eagerly looking forward to this subsidiary.
“The major expenditure component which farmers have been bearing was fertiliser cost,” Mr Lal said.
“This is because farmers had to improve the soil’s fertility, which has been lost over decades of farming on the same land.”
That was why artificial fertiliser was required.
“We have been asking for a fertiliser subsidy since 1990,” he said.
He said the union couldn’t afford the displacement of farmers.
There were 10 sectors in Vanua Levu with close to 4000 farmers.
“We have been asking the famers to continue sugarcane farming,” he said.
“We don’t want to see an exodus of farmers settling along the Suva-Nausori corridor.”
Meanwhile, Kandsami Naicker, a sugarcane farmer of Vunika, Labasa thanked Mr Sayed-Khaiyum for fulfilling his request made during the budget consultation at Labasa Civic Centre last Wednesday.
“I am very happy and thank My Sayed-Khaiyum and the Government for listening to our plight,” said the 63-year-old farmer, who has been farming since 1976.
“This is a great relief to us.”
