Sustainable fruit tree production training held at Muroro village

MURORO, 25 OCT  – A two-day training on Sustainable Fruit Tree Production (SFTP) started at Green Paradise Orchard at Muroro village in the Kavango East Region on Wednesday.
The training was initiated by the Communal Land Development Project (CLDP) under the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
The event constitutes part of a training series promoting diversification and aiming at increased production of fruits, vegetables, poultry and other agricultural production in the country.
The training is also aiming at improving food availability and nutrition at the household level in the communal areas.
Close to 90 participants, mostly farmers are taking part in the training.
Speaking during the official opening of the training on SFTP, Lead Field Advisor of CLDP Oliver Manungo said there is a need for farmers to diversify.
“From a nutritional point of view, it is important that we understand the fact that fruit is food. The reason why we are not consuming as many fruits as we are supposed to is that the fruit is not available or we cannot afford it,” he said.
The purpose of the project is for CLDP to make sure that they impart those skills for people to know how to grow fruit trees and how to propagate them.
Manungo told the farmers that they can derive an income from growing fruit trees, adding that if many people could produce more fruit trees their children would be able to go in their lifespan with fruits grown in a particular area that is affordable.
“There are people who do not have a high income. People who cannot go into shops and buy these fruits. But if many of the people could produce more fruits, even the poor would be able to buy it.”
He said fruit production creates employment, giving the example of many workers picking grapes at Aussenkehr.
Manungo said he wished he could take the participants to countries such as South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia where they have large factories that make juice and employ a lot of people.
“When you grow fruit trees, there is a value chain; from picking the fruit, making juice, jam or marmalade,” he mentioned, noting that CLDP is looking at a factory where in the long run it can produce juice and other items.
(NAMPA)