Kagera RC urged residents to plant quick maturing crops #tanzania

KAGERA Regional Commissioner (RC), Mr Fabian
Massawe, has appealed to residents in the region to plant
fast-maturing crops including cassava, sweet potatoes and
maize as a precaution following destruction caused by the
Banana Xanthomonas Wilt (BXW).
Mr Massawe said over two million improved banana
seedlings had already been produced at Maruku Agricultural
Research Institute (ARI) in Bukoba Rural District and were
being sold at a subsidised price of 300/- each.
He advised farmers in the region who uprooted their banana
stems which were affected by BXW to collect the banana
seedlings from the institute.
Mr Massawe also disclosed that the government had
allocated over 200,000 tonnes of maize for people affected
by BXW in the region.
He cautioned leaders at the village, ward and district levels
to closely monitor the distribution of food aid to the affected
families, warning that stern action would be taken against
officials who would collude in stealing the food aid
including prosecuting them in court.
Eight districts in Kagera Region have confirmed to have
been hit by the destructive Banana Xanthomonas Wilt
(BXW), also known as Banana Bacterial Wilt (BBW)
disease.
Almost 90 per cent of the entire crop is at risk of
destruction. The situation has caused panic among farmers
and residents in the region who depend on banana as their
main staple and cash crop.
BXW is a bacterial disease that causes yellowing and
wilting of the leaves, uneven and premature ripening of the
fruits and eventually the plants rot and die.
According to Mr Massawe, starting from January, this year,
surveillance teams had been making on-spot inspection
and penalizing farmers who would be proved to have
neglected their banana farms. He also directed district
councils to pass by-laws to combat the disease.
BXW is caused by the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris
and affects all types of banana. Available data indicate that
Kagera Region has annual yield of about 650,000 tonnes of
banana. Banana is an economic backbone of Kagera
residents, comprising over 2,458,023 people, according to
the 2012 Population and Housing Census.
Meanwhile, over 1,296,000 banana stems were recently
uprooted and destroyed through burning in Bukoba Rural
district in an effort to combat the deadly BXW.
Bukoba District Executive Director, Ms Gladys Dyamvunye,
said 80 out of 92 villages in the district had been affected
by BXW, adding that the district faced shortage of 51,879
tonnes of food.