LEAD FARMER, FOLLOWER FARMER CONCEPT GAINS GROUND IN MUCHINGA PROVINCE

By HAPPY MULOLANI

Government has identified the private sector through Agri-PPPs to complement its efforts in improving food security and wealth creation among rural people. Agri-PPPs are considered as innovation partnerships which stimulate agriculture development in the country. Recently, the Government of Zambia is on record for facilitating the formulation of guidelines of Agriculture Public Private Partnership (Agri-PPPs) in the agriculture sector, which seeks to bring about innovations meant to upscale farmers’ production and productivity.

This position witnessed S3P partner with the Common Market for Conservation (COMACO) as a service provider, specifically to contribute towards upscaling farmers production levels in some selected districts in Muchinga province. Specifically under the programme’s pluralist participatory approach which sought to offer advisory services to farmers with diversity of players. COMACO’s target was the smallholder farmers and interventions promoted, included increasing the levels of productivity given the low production farmers were grappling with.

Interventions were promoted through Farmer Field Schools (FFS). Through FFS, demonstration plots of different commodities of focus were set-up in respective farming communities in the province. COMACO also promoted seed multiplication of legumes to enable more farmers access legumes as it was multiplied to a wider farming community. 

COMACO introduced an approach called “Lead farmer, follower farmer.” This approach entailed farmers take the lead in the promotion and adoption of different commodities of focus. The understanding is that when farmers actively take the lead in their agriculture enterprises, they easily build a critical mass of farmers who adopt improved farming practices, thereby contributing to production and productivity.

Some of the commodities of focus included cassava, groundnuts, beans, rice and soya beans.

Muchinga Province Coordinator for COMACO, Evans Hamalila acknowledged that the lead farmer, follower approach was very effective in reaching out to farmers in the target areas. It also has been able to supplement the Camp Extension Officers’ (CEOs) work in reaching out to more farmers.

“The Lead farmer, follower farmer approach worked in a manner that farmers were clustered according to commodities of focus. Each lead farmer was involved in three commodities of focus which included rice, soya beans and groundnuts,” said Mr Hamalila.

To be effective, it had a structured hierarchy as follows; Principal lead farmer, Senior lead farmer and Lead farmer. This approach equipped farmers aptly with relevant information and trainings across their different agriculture enterprises.

He observed that this approach resulted in ownership being rooted in the community, as these lead farmers were also in cooperatives and assisted CEOs in providing feedback of activities farmers were engaged in their operational areas.

At first, the only challenge encountered when S3P partnered with COMACO in 2017 was no clear guidelines were tabled in their operations in terms of reporting lines, monitoring and backstopping. This, Mr Hamalila revealed paved way for harmonization of how COMACO and the Ministry would provide their respective interventions in tandem with the outlined goals and objectives of the programme. This was a turning point for a successful partnership and approach as they both agreed on monthly review meetings, collaboration and approach on knowledge transfer to farmers. This harmonization eased work relations and witnessed a trickle down effect on farmers.

Mr Hamalila pointed out that the lead farmer; follower approach also resulted in a high level of adoption among the farmers. For example, rice was promoted through an intensification system. This entailed the establishment of a nursery, planting and well- spacing.

“This type of rice management was suitable because the yields increased from four or five bags by 50kilogramme per lima to a minimum of between 30 to 35 bags by 50kilogramme bags of rice,” he said.

For instance, a Senior Lead farmer in rice, Vincent Mulenga trained farmers on the importance of weeding a rice field in Chinsali for rice farmers. This training was meant to demonstrate how farmers can have better yields.

Mr Hamalila said most of this rice was grown in the wetlands in Chinsali and Isoka. He noted that one source of concern was the fact that farmers had no land ownership in these areas. However, COMACO engaged in some awareness meetings with the traditional leadership on the importance of according farmers security of title in order to avoid being displaced in the near future. 

This partnership striked between COMACO and S3P was one of those unique features which also established a good market linkage besides the interventions offered in improving smallholder farmers’ production and productivity, which eased the market concerns farmers often faced during the marketing period.

And Muchinga Province Acting Provincial Agricultural Coordinator, Fred Chikuta, explained that the project achieved its objective and targets as envisaged to service 23,500 farmers while the Ministry of Agriculture set a target of 200 farmers per camp. This resulted in 2,400 farmers being reached in 12 camps.

“The identified gaps of poor yields, disjointed farmer organizations and poor value chain approach were all addressed by S3P,” disclosed Mr Chikuta.

He also appreciated the leader farmer, follower farmer approach because it enhanced the farmer to farmer extension approaches. This approach also gave them a sense of ownership of the programme goals. It equally improved monitoring at farmer level and eased the adoption of technologies in various cluster groups supported by S3P.

Mr Chikuta noted that this approach immensely contributed to reaching out to more farmers thereby supplementing CEOs efforts in camp areas.

A lead farmer in Kaso Agricultural Camp in Chinsali Central Block, Cosmas Nkole, shared his experiences as a lead farmer from 2016 to 2020. He noted that CEOs were overburdened with their workload given the vast agricultural camps and increased number of farmers, making it rather difficult to adequately facilitate in the commodities of focus.

Mr Nkole reaffirmed that the lead farmer approach was very effective and useful in complementing CEO’s efforts.

“The lead farmer, follower farmer approach has eased the CEOs workload as more farmers are being assisted in their producer groups,” he said.

Mr Nkole said farmers in his camp area were engaged in cultivating maize, rice, soya beans and beans. Previously, farmers used to cultivate local seed varieties especially beans which registered low yields, mainly for home consumption.

For instance, in a lima, they would harvest just four medas. However, remarkable strides have been made after COMACO empowered them with Kabulangeti, an improved bean seed variety and better management practices, their yields increased to about three to four bags of bean by 50 kilogramme per lima.

He also disclosed that farmers cultivated local soya beans variety just for consumption. They also accessed improved soya bean varieties namely, Kaleya and Safari which they now grow up to a lima.

“After lead farmers’ facilitation on growing improved varieties with good management practices and taking farming as a business, their perception of farming in these commodities of focus has changed. They have also learnt the importance of conservation farming in order to have better yields,” said Mr Nkole.

Another lead farmer in Mundu Nkula in Chinsali Central Block, Moses Sikazwe explained that he was chosen to become a lead farmer after; the then lead farmer excused himself when he became a depot manager.

Mr Sikazwe said his work involved facilitating lessons to farmers based on the trainings COMACO had inculcated in them as part of their interventions. All programmes were communicated through senior lead farmers, and then lead farmers were informed who in turn notified follower farmers of the cluster production group. He further stated this approach lessened the heavy workload on CEOs. Previously, it became worrisome that the number of farmers CEOs were expected to facilitate to, exceeded their capacity making their work difficult.

He highlighted as a lead farmer, he catered for 20 farmers in his rice cluster group and conducted meetings once per month. He stressed that these meetings were necessary to track the progress of the farmers.

Mr Sikazwe observed that prior to the inception of this approach under COMACO; his rice production was between 30 to 35 bags by 50 kilogramme of rice per lima. But after facilitation by the progamme on recommended management practices such as weeding and planting in lines, his rice production and fellow rice farmers in the cluster group has increased to between 40 to 45 bags by 50 kilogramme of rice per lima.

“It was encouraging that COMACO was also a buyer, they were buying 41 kilogrammes at K81 and a meda at K150 while some buyers would buy 12 medas at K180 presently. This also goes to show that rice is a profitable commodity of focus,” he said.

Mr Sikazwe attributed this increase to the provision of the improved rice variety to the farmers. The spill-over effect is feasible as the number of rice farmers has doubled.

“COMACO provided us with two improved rice varieties and these are Chama and Kilombelo rice. The number of rice farmers has increased to well over 70 farmers after realising the benefits of growing rice which does not require any fertilizer, but only needs proper management and suitable improved variety,” he said.

While, the first lead farmer, Gordon Chinuka, appreciated the COMACO approach of lead farmer, follower farmer concept because it has given confidence to farmers in their rice value chain and also equipped them with appropriate knowledge on management practises.

However, Mr Chinuka expresses concern at the non-availability of a processing machinery to polish their rice. He points out that the demand is very low for unpolished rice from buyers locally. He added that majority of buyers wanted polished rice, unlike potential buyers from outside the district, who come to the area periodically.

“As farmers, we have learnt the importance of value addition as it results in better pricing of rice. We are forced to sale unpolished rice because there is no polishing machinery within this area. The nearest polishing machine is 50 kilometres away from our area and we are charged K25 per bag, which is a lot of money for us,” he said.

A major concern is the sustainability of the interventions of this approach which promoted high production in the province. Interestingly, prior to the programme phase-out, S3P empowered COMACO with a grant of US$500,000 to sustain its activities. COMACO’s strategy is to utilise these funds as a revolving fund and also for purchases of commodities such as cassava, rice, soya beans and enhance the aspect of value addition. At the moment, COMACO already engages in value addition to peanut butter and locally produced Chinsali rice and Chama rice.

Arguably, this partnership has opened doors for increased production, productivity and linkage to a potential market, given that COMACO was not only engaged to offer interventions meant to upscale production and productivity but also provided a reliable market.

It is hoped the injection of seed money will effectively contribute to the envisaged plans of COMACO as it continues to offer interventions to smallholder farmers to achieve meaningful agriculture development.