Moldova drought: Ștefan Vodă crops destroyed
Corn and sunflower crops in the Ștefan Vodă district are largely destroyed, according to farmers who are once again facing significant losses due to drought.
In light of this, the District Council today approved a request to the Government and Parliament, seeking the declaration of an agricultural state of emergency. Central authorities have announced they will review the request and make the necessary decisions to support affected farmers.
In Volintiri village, Ștefan Vodă district, tens of hectares of corn and sunflowers are completely destroyed by the drought. Ion Țigai, a local farmer who manages approximately 800 hectares, states that, just like in previous years, he won't be able to harvest anything from these crops.
"For us, the result is zero. Look. What corn are we talking about? There are ten kernels here. We've had drought for many years in a row. 2021 was a better year; '22 and '23 brought drought again. Here, if we have one good year, three to four years are guaranteed to be very bad," Ion Țigai reported.
The situation is no better in other localities within the district, according to officials. Local authorities have established a specialized commission to assess the situation on the ground.
"Both first and second-group crops have suffered catastrophic damage. Grains and rapeseed were harvested with very low yields. Some even harvested only 830 kg of wheat per hectare," said Grigore Coban, a specialist at the Ștefan Vodă Agricultural Directorate.
In addition to requesting an agricultural state of emergency, the Ștefan Vodă District Council has also sought to have the district declared an agro-climatically disadvantaged area due to severe droughts over the past ten years. The Ministry of Agriculture has stated it will analyze the request. At the same time, the Government has announced it will continue to provide the necessary resources to ensure efficient agriculture. Currently, a project for the rehabilitation and expansion of irrigation infrastructure is underway in the Ștefan Vodă district.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
