Maravi

(HERALD) A2 farmers struggle to finance operations

A2 farmers struggle to finance operations
Monday, 24 October 2011 00:00
Obert Chifamba Agriculture Reporter

MOST model A2 farmers are struggling to finance their preparations for the 2011/12 farming season amid reports that banks are reluctant to extend loans to them as some are yet to re-pay the loans from last season.

In an interview yesterday, Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union president Mr Donald Khumalo said the majority of A2 farmers were failing to buy inputs, repair implements or even replace the obsolete equipment due to lack of funding.

"It is disappointing to note that most of these farmers have delivered grain to the Grain Marketing Board and have not yet received their payments up to this day.

"This development has seen most of the farmers failing to settle debts they incurred last season and banks can not extend more funds to them now because they have outstanding re-payments," said Mr Khumalo.

Most of the farmers were now failing to pay back what they owed due to accrual of interest rates, the ZCFU boss said.

He said his union was concerned about the development, which he described as a huge setback to the agricultural sector.

"Funding of agriculture is very critical. We cannot talk of anything to do with the economy and not mention agriculture so when farmers can not mobilise resources to buy inputs as well as mechanise their operations, it becomes a matter for concern," he added.

Mr Khumalo said the situation on the mechanisation side of agriculture was critical as most of the implements and machinery had aged and therefore no longer very reliable.

The dire situation, said Mr Khumalo, made it imperative for farmers to buy new implements or repair the ageing ones where financial resources were limited.

The GMB recently conceded that it still owed farmers US$40 million for maize delivered to its depots in the 2010/11 marketing season.

GMB general manager Mr Albert Mandizha said despite the parastatal having paid US$27,4 million to farmers so far, there was need for Treasury to urgently mobilise more funding to pay farmers for grain that was delivered after July.

"The rain season is upon us and farmers badly need that money to do their preparations, which they should have completed by now if we had paid them in time.

"The Finance Ministry recently released US$10 million, which we immediately sent to all our depots for the payment of grain that was delivered from the start of the marketing season to July 15 this year," he said.

The funding that was dispatched to the parastatal's depots was for paying farmers who delivered five tonnes and below for the period between April and July.

Most A2 farmers unfortunately have delivered bigger tonnages than this and therefore were not covered as they would be paid through banks.

Labels: A2 FARMERS, GRAIN MARKETING BOARD ZIMBABWE, ZCFU

posted by MrK @ 3:24 AM