The Farmers Union in Renk County in South Sudan’s Upper Nile state complained about insecurity and lack of funding during this year’s planting season.

Farmers Union leader Mahdi Khalifa El Shambali told Radio Tamazuj that Upper Nile farmers are ready for planting but can’t do so because of fears of violence and because they haven’t received enough funding by the national Agriculture Ministry.

“The insecurity has significantly affected the preparation for the agriculture season, besides the problem of funding,” he said.

He urged the ministry to provide agricultural inputs to farmers, saying the national government will be held responsible for failure of the crop season in Upper Nile if it does not speed up the provision of supplies.