AFRICAN CENTRE REPORTS ON FISP IN MOZAMBIQUE

The African Centre for Biodiversity
www.acbio.org.za
PO Box 29170, Melville 2109 South Africa
Tel: +27 (0)11 486 1156

Dear Friends and colleagues

The African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), shares with you the position of civil society organisations on  Farm Input Subsidy Programme in Mozambique.

The CSO statement criticizes the farm input subsidy programme (FISP of the government of Mozambique, which promotes the use of hybrid seed, toxic agrochemicals, ecologically harmful synthetic fertilisers and expensive agricultural implements and machinery.

During the period 2007-2013, the Mozambican government spent a staggering $1.1-billion on synthetic fertiliser programmes, creating enormous profits for fertiliser companies. Despite this expenditure, the agricultural sector is far from securing sufficient nutritious food for 25 million Mozambicans.

For CSOs in Mozambique, the way in which the FISP is structured, it is creating high levels of farmer dependency on expensive agricultural inputs, reducing seed and crop diversity, while threatening to make farmers’ seeds obsolete. The program is also bolstering the monopoly of companies that produce and supply farm inputs and creating enormous ecological problems such as damage to the soils through the use of synthetic fertilisers. FISP is also deepening inequalities between small-scale and commercial farmers. According to the groups, this kind of programme does not build a sustainable agricultural system able to cope with economic pressures and the effects of climate change.

As an alternative to the current FISP, the CSOs are encouraging their government to support an agricultural system that promotes agro-ecological practices for food, feed and fibre production. This includes the promotion and use of indigenous seed and respect for and maintenance of traditional knowledge and cultural traditions and practices.

Kind regards ACB team

22 Oct 2017

Source=www.acbio.org.za