Govt advises ginners to stop buying cotton from farmers they didn’t fund
Govt advises ginners to stop buying cotton from farmers they didn’t fundBy Fridah Zinyama
Monday June 25, 2007 [04:00]
GOVERNMENT has condemned the practice by some cotton ginners to buy off cotton from farmers they did not finance. A lot of problems have beset the cotton industry threatening to destroy an industry that has been steadily growing.
During the ‘Save Zambia’s Cotton Industry’ campaign launch at Pamodzi Hotel on Friday, agriculture minister Ben Kapita instructed the ginners who were buying cotton they did not finance to immediately stop as they were destroying the industry.
Kapita said the problem of ‘side selling’ and ‘side buying’ was negatively affecting the cotton sector.
He said ‘side selling’ and ‘side buying’ should be discouraged as they were threatening the future of the cotton industry in the country.
“I hope that the amendment of the cotton Act by 2007/2008 planting season will provide a strong and fair regulatory platform for all stakeholders and create a level playing field for all stakeholders involved in the sector,” he said. “The problems that the cotton industry has been experiencing have attracted government attention and we are doing everything we can to resolve the issues in the sector.”
He encouraged the small-scale farmers who were receiving inputs from out-grower scheme promoters to ensure that they sold their cotton to those companies in order to ensure the continued growth of the sector.
“I have heard that some unscrupulous ginners have been offering farmers higher prices for the cotton that other companies funded and this habit should not be encouraged,” Kapita said.
He urged the Cotton Development Trust and the Seed Control and Certification Institute to note the potential crisis highlighted in the sector.
He asked the two institutions to enforce regulations regarding the integrity of Zambia’s cottonseed and ensure that all seed issued to farmers was certified.
And Zambia Cotton Ginners Association chairperson Nigel Seabrook said the problem of ‘side selling’ and ‘side buying’ could be resolved by educating the farmers, ginners, agents and traders that the sanctity of the contract and support of the pre-financier was essential for the future benefit of all stakeholders.
“Make no mistake, without pre-financing there will be no cotton industry in Zambia,” he said.
Seabrook said the launch of the save the cotton industry would go a long way to protect some pre-financiers’ investment.
“With the amendment of the Cotton Act next planting season, we are optimistic that more than 400,000 farmers will join cotton production,” said Seabrook.
Labels: COTTON
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