Agricultural inputs sold
MASERU — A Lesotho Vulnerability Assessment Committee (LVAC) report released last week says the government’s efforts to fight hunger could have been seriously compromised after some retailers sold agricultural inputs to South African farmers.
“The government subsidy on seed and fertiliser in the 2011/12 seasons was planned to be implemented through retailers in light of their proximity to the farming communities to improve access to the subsidized inputs,” said the report.
“The implementation of the subsidy did not go according to plan as some retailers bought the subsidized inputs and kept them in their stores while others were reported to have been taking them across the border and selling them to South African farmers.”
The report said about 725 519 people, about three quarters of Lesotho’s 1.8 million people, are in urgent need of food aid or they will starve.
The government needs at least 61 885 metric tons of food to fill the shortage until the next harvest in June.
Prime Minister Thomas Thabane last week said about M1.4 billion is required for emergency food relief, livestock and agricultural inputs.
Thabane appealed to development partners to extend humanitarian assistance to address the crisis.
Thabane said the government was planning to subsidise agricultural inputs as another strategy to address the food insecurity and promote increased productivity.
Comment by Spotlight on 20 September 2012:
A qalile manasi le macongo-’motoana ho senya chelete ea sechaba. Ke tseo hee liphetoho, subsidy li rekisetsoa SA!!! Hee malaselapi!!!!!
Comment by tlali on 20 September 2012:
Spotlight, aku bale litaba hantle subsidy e rekisitsoe mehleng ea DC/LCD government, se ke oa potela Manasi Le Matoala…
Roala liborene
Comment by Lefa on 20 September 2012:
Sportline eena o tsoafa ho bala. Taba e kholo-kholo Lesotho ke ho felisa tlala. Ena eona hase taba eo bapolotiki ba tlamehileng ho bapalla ho eona. Rona ba khonang ho ngoala mona rea iketla hobane rea sebetsa ‘me re khona ho ja. Batho ba lapile kantle ka mona. Nthoe e ‘ngoe le engoe e reretsoeng hore batho ba je e lokile ho ea ka ‘na. He batho ba lapile metseng mona. Khele! Ba itlhokela feela poone hore ba sile ba je papa. Ha ba llele lijelello joaloka rona Maseru mona
Comment by Jason Mosese on 20 September 2012:
Spotlight, ha o phofa feela o phofa manasi, manasi a ne a kopana kae le li subsidy tsa 2011/2012? Ha ke re ke lona le nyofileng likete-kete tsa chalete tsa sechaba ka block farming le e fa matona a lona a macongress a qetelletseng a ileng potoaneng a sa e khutlisa. O ts’oeroe ke lehabea la bopotoana ha o nahana manasi.
Comment by Light House on 20 September 2012:
a ska potlakela ho pota Spotlight!!! hehehehe!! ichu!
Comment by Lekaota on 20 September 2012:
Banna Spotlight!!!! Aaaa!!!!! na o balile litaba tsee? Objectivity na ke ntho eo o nang le eona? akere taba tsa thekiso ea li subsidy e etsahatse in ur gov era joale Thabane le chakaleka ea hae has to find means of cleaning the mess ur gov made? Che nnete o e ts’abile oa heso o tla be o lo ichoella!!!! aaaaa!!!!!
Comment by Lekaota on 20 September 2012:
Taba tsa hau eka ke tsa bosoasoi Lefa, fela ehlile o bua nnete oa heso, tlala e metseng mona e otla pelo ngoaneso, kannete le nna ke se mpa ke re leha ho ka ba mokhoa oa papanyana fela le eona poone e lokile ha ho na ho ts’oana e le hore ba tle ba khone le ho itemela for the next harvest, kannete nahana fela ha ho ka thoe ba ee masimong ka tlala ba emele the harvest na ekaba masisa pelo a joang. Kannete bana ba bo rona le batsoali ba rona ba sotlehile ts’otleho e ts’abehang kantle ka mona!!! Joale bo Spotlight ke bo mots’eha lefu fela tjena….
Comment by Liphoto on 20 September 2012:
Banna ba neng bana le Lipotongaone ba Ahileng Agric Bank ba Kae honajoale ba Lelekkuoe ho bulela li Burial Sevice le Libanka tse Inkelang ho Sechaba fela hose mohlang li khotlisang. Tlala Ea Lapeng mona ekeke ea Fela hofihlela ho kutleloa Mane moo Spotlight asa Batleng teng moo Muso oa Manasi onong o Assista Lifamara ka thepa ekang Materekere le tse ling/ Moo Bahoebi baneng Ba Banka Sehoebi fela Agric Bank eseng Manyfonyofo ana a Bophelo bo pheloang Kajeno maseru ba Fast Chash Fast Lane Fast Death. SIS
Comment by Liphoto on 20 September 2012:
Banna ba neng bana le Lipotongaone ba Ahileng Agric Bank ba Kae honajoale ba Lelekkuoe ho bulela li Burial Sevice le Libanka tse Inkelang ho Sechaba fela hose mohlang li khotlisang. Tlala Ea Lapeng mona ekeke ea Fela hofihlela ho kutleloa Mane moo Spotlight asa Batleng teng moo Muso oa Manasi onong o Assista Lifamara ka thepa ekang Materekere le tse ling/ Moo Bahoebi baneng Ba Banka Sehoebi fela Agric Bank eseng Manyfonyofo ana a Bophelo bo pheloang Kajeno maseru ba Fast Cash Fast Lane Fast Death. SIS
Comment by call on 20 September 2012:
I am not talking from the political point of view but as a conceerned Country man. I have been reading all the comments you have made, but I honestly did not find any solution to the present food crises in this country. Our long time experieces tell us that all basotho are not trustworthy when it comes to the loans and subsidies given by the government. As far as I am concerned the only solution could be restablishment of agric bank so that people who want to take agriculture as a business could easily get the loans from that bank as individuals or in groups, unlike recently where agriculture is taken as anybody`s cup of tea because it is the only economic activity found in marginalised rural areas.
NTATE THABANE AND YOUR TEAM PLEASE SLEEP OVER THIS IF YOU REALLY WANT TO RESCUE THIS NATION.
Comment by Lenasi on 20 September 2012:
Spotlite ehlile ke sono sepoto sa nnete.
Comment by Lekaota on 21 September 2012:
l couldn’t have said it better than that Call. Kannete this time around hoja bo ralipoloti bana ba tlohella ho nna ba tlolisana khati ka lipuo tse sa aheng tsa li ts’okelano, linyeoe tse re sa tsebeng na li ts’oaretse basotho eng. They should address the ultimate issue ea hunger facing our people out there! Hoja for once ba ka shebana le bothata ba ho nts’a Lesotho bofumeng bona boo le leng ho bona ba thusa basotho irrespective of thier political affiliations!!!! Ideology tsa bo Ntat’a Ntahli could be re-visited tse ntle fela anyway coz nnete ke hore ha ho motho ea motle tseke-tseke!!!! Ekaba re tla etsa joang ba hesong? I have a suggestion ea hore batho bohle ba utloang eka re ka etsang phetoho bohle kaofela re sa tsotella mekha ea lipolotiki re keng re kopaneng somewhere idea tsena tse re li ngolang mona re li ts’ohle ha re qeta re atamela makala a amehang a muso in an OBJECTIVE way re sa loane empa re kopa hore ba re mamele mme ka mohlomong ba ka rata maikutlo a rona, for instance issue ea M50,000,000.00 personnally ha nke ke utloe na ha re e fuoe ke eng, if our business plans li feitse le teng we deserve to know achee!!!! Ke empe ke utlooe hleng ha re etse ponts’o ea nyatso or whatsoever but rea lla re kopa thuso coz ha re ntse re ngola tjena fela ke bona eka ha ho moo re eang!! Likhomo!
Comment by Mekeche on 23 September 2012:
Spotline bala senyesemane hantle u seke wa tlapukela, haosa utlwisise u botse