US commits $ 16 million to provide seed and fertilisers
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: In a ceremony in Islamabad, the United States committed $16 million to provide seed and fertilisers to flood-affected farmers and their families in Balochistan.
The assistance is being funded from the Kerry-Lugar funds through the US Agency for International Development and will help ensure that farmers affected by the recent floods can plant a viable crop of Rabi wheat this winter and recover their ability to support themselves, contribute to the national food supply, and contribute to the economy.
The programme will be implemented by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and will provide wheat, vegetable seed and fertiliser packages to help approximately 680,000 family members, particularly female farmers, and households headed by women with children under five years of age.
“Providing the wheat seed will help farmers maintain the normal planting and harvesting cycle,” USAID Deputy Mission Director Denise Herbol said at the ceremony. “The assistance will also help revitalise the agricultural economy of Balochistan.”
The funding complements similar programmes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. The US has now committed $62 million in assistance to flood-affected farmers throughout Pakistan.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\10\30\story_30-10-2010_pg7_30
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