Over three thousand households in Mwinilunga district of North-Western province have been targeted to implement the emergency wet lands cropping sub program of the Food Security Pack (FSP) as response to the disaster situation.

This came to light during an emergency District Disaster Management Committee (DDMC) meeting held in the district today.

District Commissioner Harrison Kamuna who is DDMC chairperson said the meeting was called to respond to the looming hunger situation due to dry spells the country has experienced and following the declaration of the situation as a disaster by President Hakainde Hichilema.

“The President has already declared, we now must move in on the ground to begin ensuring that we gather authentic data that can help in decision making regarding how best the current disaster situation can be addressed even though winter maize and the department of community development, this is an emergency and urgent” he said.

Mr. Kamuna said one of the key things government has embarked on as response to the situation is venturing into the growing of winter and the wetland maize through various ministries including the department of Community Development under the wetland component of the Food Security Pack (FSP) program.

He said the district is expected to be on the ground to identify suitable dambo and wetland areas across the district where farmers can be empowered to carry out winter maize farming and submit the findings to the Provincial Administration.

And District Community Development Officer (DCDO) Lunza Imwiko said the emergency wetland cropping program will be implemented side by side with the original Food Security Pack (FSP) which is currently targeting 700 beneficiaries under wetland cropping in the district.

Ms. Imwiko explained that under the emergency wetland cropping, identified households will each receive one bag of top dressing, one bag of D compound and a 5 Kilograms maize seed to vulnerable but viable farmers who can guarantee production.

Meanwhile District Agriculture Coordinator (DACO) Lewis Chiwele said areas where people are already practicing wetland farming including those which have been worst hit by the dryspell such as Ntambu, Thom Ilunga, Kazozu and Mumpulumba where close to 500 hectares of maize fields have been destroyed have since been identified to implement the program.

Mr. Chiwele said his office through the camp agricultural officers are already in the field collecting data on wetlands saying over 700 hectares have so far been identified in all the 38 agriculture camps in the district.

“Currently the most hit area is Thom Ilunga and Kakoma agricultural camps and 500 hectares of maize fields are already destroyed with farmers having no other alternative to the challenge as the cassava fields are as well affected, “Mr. Chiwele said.

He explained that out of the 768 hectares of wetlands identified, close to 1000 famers are currently utilizing 300 hectares of these dambo areas saying more than 3000 farmers can qualify to venture into wetland maize production in the identified areas once empowered.