Mozambique: Certified seed production jumps 18.3%

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Mozambique: Certified seed production jumps 18.3%

3:23 CAT | 26 Jul 2022

Image: Ikweli

The production of certified seed in the current campaign was 12,061 tons, a growth of 18.3% compared to the 10,196 tons produced in the 2020/2021 campaign.

Data from the Agricultural Inputs Subsector in the Agrarian Campaign presented at the Council of Ministers session this Tuesday (26-07) indicate that “production growth was driven by the demand for seeds of the crops chosen by the SUSTENTA programme (corn, soy, sesame, beans, rice and peanuts)”.

“On the other hand, the agricultural sector absorbed 11,969 tons of seeds, registering an average growth of 58% in the last 3 years”, which means that “once again the Sustenta Program was responsible for the increase in the use of seeds, through the promotion of around 50% of the certified seed used in this campaign, a volume of 5,930 tons”.

“The demand for seeds in the country is 90,000 tons; the use of certified seed corresponds to 13.3% of the total needs of Mozambique”

The provinces of Manica, Zambézia and Nampula are the largest seed producers in Mozambique.

In turn, fertiliser use in Mozambique recorded five-fold average growth over the last three years, from 6.38 kg/ha in 2019 to 29.9 kg/ha in 2021.

The national use of fertilisers grew by 12% compared to the previous campaign, with the SUSTENTA Program representing 11% of national demand.

Finally, pesticide use in Mozambique has grown at an annual average of around 31%. In the period under analysis, the volume of pesticides used decreased by 33% compared to the previous season, but this did not significantly reduce agricultural production, as there were no occurrences of pests of any great economic impact.

The average price of pesticides increased by 37% compared to the previous campaign.

Source: Jornal Ikweli