One of the concerns of
smallholder farmers in rural areas is lack of proper road-networks which often affects
their marketing of agricultural produce. Proper road-networks is key if
agricultural production is to be enhanced. This notion is likely to facilitate farmers’
active involvement in their various farming enterprises sustainably and
profitably.
Maybin Chanda, a rural
smallholder farmer in Kawambwa district laments how poor the road-network was before
the intervention of the Smallholder Productivity Promotion Programme (S3P).
“Before S3P came in to
support the development of the road-network, it was very difficult to access
the market because the road was in a deplorable state, making it very difficult
to sale our agriculture produce on time,” says Mr Chanda.
He thanked S3P for the support
rendered towards the rehabilitation of the road-network. The timely
rehabilitation of the road-network has made it easier to have a direct link to diverse
potential markets.
Mr Chanda further revealed
that there was no storage facility for farmers to place their produce at
strategic points, making bulking a mission to accomplish. But now the area has
a storage shed with the support of S3P coupled with the improved road-network.
“It is a blessing for
us to have a storage facility located strategically and good road-network
because now our ability to reach potential markets is significantly great and
more farmers have been attracted to embark on various agriculture enterprises,”
said Mr Chanda.
Mr Chanda emphatically
said farmers are no longer focusing on cultivating maize only, instead they
have also learnt that diversification will help them to register better profit
margins given the good infrastructure in place.
He says during the
period S3P offered its support towards the provision of infrastructure, which
has triggered more participation of farmers in various agriculture enterprises.
This is evident in how the provision of infrastructure has eased accessibility
to potential markets which was a major problem in the past.
S3P Programme
Coordinator Martin Liywalii retaliated that for the programme to adequately
support farmers, there was need to help with infrastructure in order to
facilitate their linkage to potential markets. This idea coupled with
instilling in farmers appropriate marketing skills and value addition was pivotal
in ensuring farmers engage sustainably in their agriculture enterprises.
Mr Liywalii reaffirmed
that the project endeavoured to deliver government policy of increasing food
production, income generation and economic growth for the target households.
He also disclosed that
the programme ensured that camp extension officers in the field were supported
with motor bikes to ensure their mobility and increase their number of field
visits to farmers in their catchment areas.
Mr Liywalii echoed that
though the programme was originally conceptualized to focus on supporting four
commodities of focus which include cassava, beans, groundnuts and maize. The programme
realized after re-evaluation, the need to broaden its support base to other
commodities such as soya beans coupled with infrastructure.
Another smallholder
farmer in Mbala in Northern Province Elizabeth Nampasa hailed the programme for
facilitating trainings through cooperative societies. Mrs Nampasa said before
farmers undertook any trainings which had a business inclination, their
cooperatives were stagnant in their agriculture activities due to lack of
knowledge and skills centred on entrepreneurship.
“As a cooperative, we
never used to advance or progress until 2018 when three cooperative societies
were invited for entrepreneurship skills leadership and business development
through S3P’s support. After undergoing these trainings, there was a
difference…” said Mrs Nampasa.
These trainings have
stimulated interest among farmers to engage in various avenues which inculcate
and promote a business culture in order for them to be viable entities. It is
clear for cooperatives to be profitable entities, there is need to engage in
enterprises which positions them with a higher bargaining power.
The cooperative presently
owns a house which they lease out at K350 per month. They have also acquired a
hammermill. These properties the cooperative possess helps it to generate its
own funds and run sustainably.
It is also encouraging
that the District Cooperative Union (DCU) has managed to employ a manager who
is very useful and supports cooperatives with any support they need to progress
in their enterprises.
Department of
Cooperatives Director Shadreck Mungalaba, explained that strengthening district
farmer associations through capacity building is key. This is in order for these
associations to be independent and viable entities. For instance, six (6)
district cooperative unions along with 550 farmer groups at camp level were
strengthened through capacity building during the period of S3P’s
implementation process.
Mr Mungalaba emphasized
that part of sustainability efforts is to continue with interventions such as
gender mainstreaming in trainings given that the participation of women in the
production process is key. And there is need for beneficiary participation in
trainings to be based on cost-sharing, in this way, the dependency on
government or donors will be lessened.
He advised that
sustainability efforts need to re-think how the Department of Co-operatives facilitates
linkage with business development service providers and other development
partners. The department in collaboration with other partners needs to
encourage and support diversification and value addition among smallholder
farmers.
Though there were some
bottlenecks during the implementation of S3P such as delayed funding which is
key to undertaking any trainings, some lessons learnt were to ensure the
involvement of the cooperative department during all the processes of future
collaborating programmes in order to sustain the process when programmes
phase-out.
Clearly, S3P’s
support towards infrastructure and cooperatives is a milestone which requires
continuity, it is hoped smallholder farmers will sustain the agriculture development
agenda by actualizing ideas through their organised cooperatives. These ideas
should be tailored towards increased agriculture production, nutrition and
increased income.
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