Online Reporter
Theseus Mauruki Shambare
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Zimbabwe Mercantile Exchange (ZMX) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening Zimbabwe’s agricultural markets, improving market access for smallholder farmers and building more resilient food systems.
The partnership seeks to promote structured agricultural markets, warehouse receipt financing, improved commodity storage and transparent trading systems that enable farmers to receive fair value for their produce.
It also seeks to strengthen quality assurance across agricultural value chains through enhanced commodity grading standards and laboratory support.
Speaking during the signing ceremony in Harare on Wednesday, WFP Zimbabwe representative and country director Ms Barbara Clemens said the agreement marked an important milestone in efforts to build stronger food systems anchored on functioning markets and resilient institutions.
She said sustainable food security could not be achieved through increased production alone.
“It requires functioning markets, it requires strong institutions, it requires partnerships that can connect farmers, businesses, government and communities in ways that create lasting economic opportunities and, of course, food security,” she said.
Ms Clemens said WFP’s future direction in Zimbabwe places increasing emphasis on building local capacities, strengthening national systems and supporting long-term resilience.
She said the organisation’s objective was to create conditions under which institutions, markets and communities continue to thrive long after external support has ended.
Ms Clemens said many farmers continue to face challenges in accessing reliable markets, obtaining transparent pricing, reducing post-harvest losses and securing financing despite producing valuable agricultural commodities.
She said collaboration with ZMX would help establish more structured and efficient markets capable of addressing those constraints while supporting Government efforts to strengthen rural economies and develop Village Business Units.
ZMX chief executive officer Mr Collen Tapfumaneyi said the partnership reflected a shared commitment to creating practical market-based solutions that improve efficiency, transparency and resilience across Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector.
He said agriculture remains the backbone of Zimbabwe’s economy but many farmers continue to face limited market access, inadequate storage facilities, post-harvest losses and constrained access to finance.
Mr Tapfumaneyi said the partnership would strengthen the capacity of smallholder farmers to participate in structured markets while improving standards in commodity grading, handling and warehouse receipt systems.
“When farmers have confidence that they can store their grain safely, access finance for their produce and sell into transparent, competitive markets, they are encouraged to invest more in production,” he said.
He said this would create a cycle of higher productivity, increased private sector participation, improved national grain reserves and stronger resilience to future shocks.
Mr Tapfumaneyi said ZMX was also working to ensure farmers in remote parts of the country have equal access to market information and buyers through structured trading platforms.
He said improved access to markets would enable farmers to obtain fair prices while reducing exploitation arising from information gaps.
The partnership also includes the handover of laboratory equipment to strengthen commodity quality assurance and standards, a move expected to improve confidence in Zimbabwe’s agricultural value chains and support the country’s drive towards sustainable food security.
