Government’s command agriculture programme, which is meant to return the country to its former breadbasket status, faces failure due to the slow take off pace, experts have warned.
BY TARISAI MANDIZHA
Government has in the past embarked on similar programmes and all of them failed dismally.
The new programme has been estimated to cost $516 million and its target is to produce 2 million tonnes of maize from 400 000 hectares of land.
According to government, the programme requires 10 000 tonnes of seed at a cost of $24 million, 100 000 tonnes of double compound D fertilizer at a cost of $79 million, ammonium nitrate (160 000 tonnes at a cost of $76,8 million), lime (280 000 tonnes at a cost of $16,8 million), chemicals worth $10 million, irrigation development ($168 million) and working capital of $140,4 million.
Agricultural economist Peter Gambara said the new initiative, if properly run, would get the country out of its current predicament but the major challenge already facing the programme was time.
“The major worry for farmers is time. There is need for the programme to be implemented as a matter of urgency,” Gambara said.
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He said the absence of funding was making it difficult for farmers to be productive. Government has no money at the moment, as exposed by the mid-term fiscal policy review statement announced last week and yet the planting season is just by the corner.
Banks are unwilling to offer funding because farmers have no collateral because the 99-year leases are not bankable. Gambara said the other challenge was that it was doubtful that companies had the capacity to produce enough inputs like fertilizer and seed in time, considering the current economic challenges.
Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers’ Union president Wonder Chabikwa said the command agriculture, if successful, would re-capacitate the agricultural sector in Zimbabwe. Currently, financial institutions regarded agriculture as a risky business, he said.
Chabikwa also said the programme was moving slower than it should, given that the cropping season was already upon us.
“We thought by mid-September they should be through with farm assessments and the people who are going to be part of the programme should be aware by now.
“Time is very crucial in farming…we feel government should speed up on the implementation process as timing is of great importance,” Chabikwa said.
He said capacity utilisation for the agriculture sector was very low due to limited funding even though, unlike other sectors, farmers would be provided with free inputs and machinery.
Grain Millers’ Association of Zimbabwe president Tafadzwa Musarara said the difference between command agriculture and other agricultural initiatives like contract farming was that command agriculture was financed by government while contract farming was driven by the private sector.
Government has rolled out a number of food security initiatives in the past, which include the establishment of the strategic grain reserve, giving the Grain Marketing Board monopoly to buy maize and establishing the government input scheme.
In 2000, government launched an input support scheme in which it gave free inputs to farmers for six consecutive years. The plan failed partly because the ministry did not receive the budget required and there was virtually nothing coming from the assisted farmers.
In 2004, government through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe launched the productive sector facility where the RBZ provided financing to farmers at 25% interest rate per annum for food crop production. This came at a time interest rates were over 300%.
The facility had a six-month tenure for seasonal loans and an 18-month tenure for medium term loans. It failed dismally as well.
Operation Maguta/Inala/Food Security was next to be launched and it focused on beef and crop production. It was a separate entity from the ministry of agriculture and RBZ accorded it special payment and clearance arrangements.
There was gross abuse of this scheme by those in charge of the programme — most of whom were military people — resulting in genuine farmers being elbowed out of the programme. Inputs were diverted to the black market, sold and the money lined the pockets of the influential politicians. Again, another government attempt to boost agriculture had collapsed.
Next was the Champion Farmers Programme which was introduced in 2008. This time government undertook to provide inputs to targeted farmers capable of producing high yields.
Once again, it failed because corruption led to almost anyone who applied for the inputs, mostly Zanu PF officials and supporters, being given plenty of inputs regardless of their capability to make productive use of them. The programme was also launched late and input distribution suffered from lack of fuel and transport facilities.
