GITEGA October 24th (ABP) – Farmers looking for hybrid corn seeds named PAN53 and Bazooka have been seen in large numbers since last week at the Gitega commune office (center of the country) as well as at the provincial management of agriculture and livestock.
Those farmers are wondering when they will acquire those seeds. That is when the others will soon start hoeing.
Mrs. Nininahazwe Marie Goreth, a farmer residing on Bukwazo village in the Mubuga zone, told ABP that this is the third time she has come to the commune, looking for those seeds, but in vain. Mrs. Ininahazwe points out that the communal administration gives them meetings which lead to nothing. “I noticed that there were no more seeds in the stock and I decided to buy and plant the unselected corn grains sold at the Gitega central market.” An opinion that she shares with Niyongabo Gordien living on Rubamvyi village, in the Gitega rural area. The latter indicates that for this growing season A, he preferred to buy unselected seeds sold at the market, due to the lack of selected PAN53 or Bazooka seeds. He also indicated that the NGO Tubura, which supervises farmers in the villages, was used to providing them with selected seeds, but that this year the situation was not the same.
At the level of the Provincial Directorate of Environment, Agriculture and Livestock (DPEAE), it is indicated that they too are waiting for selected seeds and ask farmers to also wait patiently.
Despite the glaring lack of those seeds, those farmers warmly thank the government of Burundi which has spared no effort to ensure that farmers have fertilizer on time, even if the price has been increased.