US$45m agric inputs support scheme unveiled

2011/12 summer cropping season at subsidised prices.

This comes as the donor community pledged US$43 million for the same purpose.
Over a million poor households need Government assistance countrywide.
Addressing journalists in Harare yesterday, Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Joseph Made said A1, A2, small-scale farmers and old resettlement farmers who delivered grain to Grain Marketing Board depots in the last five years will benefit from the scheme.

He said communal farmers will buy the inputs without conditions.
Although the prices of some of the inputs are yet to be disclosed, GMB has been charging US$15 for a bag of fertiliser and US$16 per 50kg bag of maize seed.
A2 farmers, who were excluded from the scheme last season, will this year be allowed to buy the subsidised maize seed, sorghum, lime, Compound D and top dressing fertilisers.

Said Minister Made: “With the weather forecast predicting good rains this season, it is wise that we take advantage of these indications.
“Given the mistakes we made last year, all classes will access the inputs this year.
“This does not mean every farmer will benefit but every category will have a farmer including the A2 farmers. The inputs would be distributed equitably to the country’s 10 provinceS.”

Minister Made said 50 percent of the inputs will go to communal farmers, 20 percent to A2 farmers while 30 percent will be reserved for A1 and small-scale commercial farmers.
“All church-related institutions should also apply and just like farmers, not all will benefit. The major players in terms of seed supply include Seed Co, Pannar, Pioneer, Arda, Agriseeds, Progene among others,” he said.

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Input distribution, Minister Made said, will be done through a voucher system.
“For communal farmers, the issue of having delivered something to the GMB in the last five years does not matter, but as long as one has cash on him, one will access the inputs.
“To avoid double-dipping, a situation whereby one person gets inputs under more than three facilities, all donor funding programmes will be co-ordinated by my Ministry, while vouchers will be labelled separately for each farming sector,” he said.

Minister Made, however, said the US$45 million fell short of national requirements.
He said the Finance Ministry should give GMB the US$35 million it owed farmers.
“The money is far below what is needed. If money is released, this will go a long way in augmenting the farmers in buying inputs.

“I will be working with Minister Biti on a daily basis until I get additional resources because this is an opportunity for us to revive our agriculture sector.
“Hopefully, he (Minister Biti) will realise that he has to channel resources towards agriculture because there is no better time than now,” he said.
Presenting the 2011 mid-term fiscal policy review in July this year, Minister Biti indicated that Government would contribute US$45 million to cover 500 000 vulnerable farming households.

Commenting on donors’ contribution, Minister Made said: “As for now we are happy with their co-operation and we still emphasise that their focus in the rural areas should be agriculture and not any other activity. Agricultural activities should also be carried out during the night.”

Out of US$91 million committed by the donor community, US$43m will go towards the purchase of farming inputs and the remainder will go towards training, market support and assets acquisition.
In his budget, Minister Biti said for the forthcoming summer cropping season, Government was targeting 2.63 million hectares for grain crops, of which 2 million hectares would be under maize and the remaining 630 000 ha under small grains.

At an average yield per hectare of 1.2 tonnes, total maize production of about 2.4 million tonnes was projected against the national grain requirement of 2.2 million tonnes, Minister Biti said.