Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
e. Investigate alternative trading mechanisms to which the farm sector is exposed as a basis
for determining the optimal trade patterns for sustainable smallholder development.
f. On the basis of (d) and (e) above, identify measures to link small farmers to the available
trade opportunities. In this regard, to come up with alternative designs for addressing
access to resources, including land and credit (including through microfinance),
knowledge and skills (through an efficient and farmer-relevant extension service).
g. Investigate the supply chain for selected agricultural products within the region and
assess extent of vertical coordination among producers and markets and determine
measures to improve operational efficiency, profitability and value-adding. In this
regard, the issue of informal cross-border operations involving agricultural products
was considered crucial for investigation and quantification.
1.2 The problem
The growing number of people living in abject poverty within the region remains a source
of serious concern to both governments and development organizations. Theoretically put
at that time at about 70% of the population on a regional basis, there is evidence that this is
grossly understated for many countries in the region while for others it may be overstated.
For instance, rural conditions had been worsening in countries such as Swaziland and
Zimbabwe since 2001/2002, when the region as a whole experienced the worst food and
humanitarian crises in years. While many of the affected countries had by 2006 embarked
on the route to recovery, others had sunk deeper into destitution. The conclusion that was
drawn at that time that other factors may have been at play has proved to be quite prophetic
in the unfolding drama in Zimbabwe which, even in 2009, was still grappling with the
symptoms of an unmistakable government failure. In a country like Swaziland where as
many as 60% of the population could be living below the poverty line, the suggestion is that
maintenance of stiff controls and regulations on the maize industry may be hurting small
farmers as well as the rural poor. Again for Zimbabwe, several factors had been implicated;
including the procedures followed in fast-tracking the land reform programme after 1999
and other political factors, although much of the information remained anecdotal in the
absence of systematic scientific study.
The situation is not much different in rural Mozambique where severe infrastructure
deficiencies hamper farmers' access to markets and opportunities to profitably market
produce or obtain inputs. While Botswana as an economy continues to show promise in
terms of efficient economic and public policy management, there seems to be a disconnect
in terms of the pace of rural transformation, with many rural areas being still steeped in
poverty and untouched by the significant progress at the macroeconomic level. The South
African situation is now well-known in respect to the serious dichotomies between rural
and urban areas and among races despite considerable progress on the political front and
the sustenance of a modern industrial sector. Many parts of South Africa, particularly the
Search WWH ::
Custom Search