Rusan farmers say emigration is not a solution, and government should help agriculture

17/02/2017 00:00

Few are the farmers of the Rusan village in Delvilna who have left their village to emigrate.

The village was created by the exodus of the Cham population, who were evicted from Northern Greece decades ago. They have tried to live so far off the Rusan’s natural resources.

200 families in this area live on agriculture revenues. Petrit Hoxha, one of the farmers, says that making a living out of agriculture is not easy. If you don’t produce high quantities, there will be not enough to sell. This year, his family is experimenting by mixing different types of grapes, hoping to cultivate more, even with olives.

Another family, that of Lutfi Cafaj, has settled in this village in 1938, after they left Greece. He says they built a small house close to the mosque, which grew bigger year after year during the 90s, through hard work. Cafaj says since most of villagers live on farming, the government should help with subventions.

He works together with his sons and his wife 12 hours a day. They own 700 olive trees, hundreds of tangerine trees and a vegetable parcel. He appeals the government to at least support them for modernizing the equipment.

Vezire, another resident of Rusan, says you can make a living even in villages if you work hard. She says she paid university studies for two of her children by cultivating vegetables and selling them in Delvina.

“Who works hard, can make a living. Of course, we need assistance from the government at least for fertilizers”, Cafai says.

Rusani and other Delvina villages are very far from the city of Vlore, but residents believe that emigration is not a solution anymore, and that agriculture would serve better to their future.

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