By: Problyn J Alpha
A reported flooding has destroyed farming activities worth thousands of Leones in Kori chiefdom Moyamba District.
One of the victims of the said flooding, former honourable member of Parliament in Moyamba District now a master farmer Hon. Jolly Magnus Lavallie told this medium that although flooding is an old phenomenon in Moyamba District during the rains but the one this year was very devastating, noting that having farmed for over five years in Moyamba District thereby establishing settlements on his farms the said flooding has never occurred for the past five decades.
He is the flooding occurred when they were about to harvest at least the more than five hundred arches of rice farm cultivated this year.
According to him in an event to resist the said flooding it over came them and destroyed so many farms along the bank of the Tiaama River including some chiefdoms in the Northern region of the country.
“With such disaster if proper measures or interventions are not taken by the government of Sierra Leone, humanitarian organisations and individuals including non-governmental organisations interested in agricultural activities to remedy the situation famine will loom over Moyamba District and the affected nearby Districts,” Hon. Lavallie stressed.
He maintained that at the moment there are no farming activities ongoing in Moyamba District especially in the affected areas or farms. Talking about the implications of the reported flooding, the former law maker pointed out that the implications of the flooding cannot be over-emphasized as it doesn’t only affect him as an individual but equally people he employs to work on his farm and those he hires tractors from, adding the financial implications of the said flooding is over two thousand dollars.
He further told A-Z that as contingency plans in order for flooding not to stop their activities as farmers prior to the reported flooding, he has bought an out board engine for farmers to be using to access their farms during the rains or in an event of flooding.
“With all my tireless efforts in agricultural activities, l am one of the farmers that have never benefited from any government interventions in-terms of the Feed SAleone project implementation former honorable Member of Parliament opined,” he said.
He intimated our cor
respondent that the funds invested in his farm that has flooded were solicited from a private company which he provides leadership for as a way of supporting the Feed SAleone project and the people of Sierra Leone by extension. He therefore called on the government of Sierra Leone and non- governmental organizations interested in agricultural activities to come to their aid as food is life.
