Current rainfalls will not favor crops – government tells farmers

Farmers have been cautioned not to alter their planting calendars because the current rainfall being experienced is not reliable.

Also, according to a Uganda National Meteorological Authority (UNMA) expert, if farmers go ahead and plant their crops, they will only incur loses.

While addressing the press at the Uganda Media Center on Wednesday, George Omonyo, a senior Meteorologist from UNMA said that the current showers are termed as ‘off-season rainfall’ which will not at any time help farming as it does in rainy seasons.

“We have what is called weather systems which bring or take away rainfall. Right now this system has the highest pressure system and is sitting over the great channels of Mozambique. It is giving out a lot of pressure, this has brought the rainfall belt around the lakes such as Lake Victoria,” said tried to Omonyo.

According to Omonyo since December and January are not supposed to be rainy months, the rain falling this month is not reliable.

“By March, April that is when we expect rain throughout the whole of the country. So this particular pressure system is not going to take long, with time they will become weak and move away and our normal dry season calendar will surface. Such rains showers keep on moving and our farmers must know it,” said Omonyo.

Omonyo cautioned that such this type rain may cause hailstones since it’s regarded as burst which will destroy crops if farmers go ahead with planting.

“Some people are now planning to start clearing their gardens, then start planting by the beginning of next season of May which will disorganize their calendar, I want to assure them that they should remain on their traditional calendar,” he added.