Caritas South Sudan in partnership with UN Food and Agricultural Organization on Thursday distributed seeds, agricultural tools and solar water pump to Vegetable Market Producers Group in Jondoru.
Caritas South Sudan Program Manager, Joseph Sabu Pasquale, says the distribution aims to strengthen and build the capacity of the vegetable growers to adapt to the modern farming system.
“Some of the benefits that we expect farmers to benefit will improve their nutrition, they will be able to provide vegetable at a very low cost, there will be a regular supply of vegetable and throughout the year, there will be a kind income to the group and it will also be a source of employment for some of them. At the end I think our key target is to develop the community that will remain resilient. That is out utmost goal, that is the nature of our job”, he explains.
Some beneficiaries from Jonduru Vegetable Market Producers Group express their joy to receive the seeds and the farming tools particularly the solar water pump.
They promised to supply vegetables to the market in few weeks to come.”
UN FAO Seed Associate Mohamed Juma Aliga urges the Vegetable Market producers to properly manage the equipment and to constantly supply the market with vegetables since the machine will help them even in dry seasons.
“We are now giving you capital to support you in the production; we are giving you solar energy generator, it doesn’t require fuel, it doesn’t require human efforts, it works by itself, you can produce the whole year so we are not going to wait for rain and so on, but that is not enough for me, what I want to see is put in action, I want to see you constantly producing food for the market, you already have a market and we are supporting your effort for entrepreneurship”, he urges.
“The second issue is the management, we shall have people who will be trained to handle it and this thing is not going to stay there, so I am urging all of us, we should support ourselves, South Sudan historically has been feeding these neighbours, so we can still do it, Juma vows.
UN FAO supports Caritas South Sudan to support Vegetable Market Producers Group of Jondoru and Joppa with capacity building, seeds and agricultural tools, among others.