Visiting some small scale farmers

As I approach one of the many villages in the Chisamba district, make shift market stalls, fashioned by sticks and bags, line both sides of the road. It is a lazy Saturday afternoon. The sun is beating down and I am finding the bright glare of the sun testing on my eyes. There is a hubbub of activity and conversations but the stalls are not busy.

Walking through the village, men stare, woman look indifferent and children are curious. Some of them play with home made trucks made from sticks and bits of plastic.Woman sit behind the stalls on boxes and crates nursing their babies.

The women in this stall show off their babies. All of the babies are just two or three months old.They work right up until they give birth and immediately after the baby is born.  The little babies are well covered up and all seem very happy and content. The women laugh and take delight at me admiring their children. When I ask if they have any more children they inform me they have twelve children between them. They work on small farms and sell commodities to get by. 

One young woman (not photographed) tells me how her parents insisted that she got married at fourteen years. She got married and almost immediately had a baby. Shortly after, her husband left and now, at nineteen, she is trying to fend for herself and her baby. She seeks help from relatives but quite often has to find other business to get money to survive. 'Other business' includes selling commodities and prostitution. 

Her story is not uncommon in Zambia as many parents who have not been educated themselves often see marriage as a way to receive a small payment and someone else to fend for their daughter. They often see a baby as a 'gift from God' without seeing the challenges of a young person raising a child in very difficult circumstances. 

 

However it has to be said that even though I perceive their circumstances as difficult, it is not necessarily how they perceive it.  In fact for many, especially those who are uneducated, it is a way of life. Just by chatting to the villagers I am learning a lot from the way they shrug their shoulders and smile. They are resolved to accepting their lot. This is the way life is mainly due to lack of education and opportunity.  Furthermore, their hopelessness is compounded by a number of social issues such as, poverty, unemployment, teenage pregnancy, stealing, corruption, illicit sex, HIV/AIDS, wife beating and drinking.

Loud music booms out from a pub in the middle of the village and the tin roofed building seems to be over populated with men standing around the entrance or sitting on the walls and ground drinking. Drink is a big social problem here and affects every aspect of family life including keeping down a job. Quite often it is the woman here who carry the burden of raising their family and finds ways to do 'business' to provide for their children.

As I wander through the village children and teenagers follow me. Some of them are eager to talk with me and want to check out my mobile and Marantz recorder. I record their voices and take some photographs that I can show them. They throw back their heads and laugh out loud when they see the photograph. They talk about there school. When I ask them how old they are they go silent or offer a few numbers leaving me guessing. It is difficult to work out their ages as many of them suffer from stunted grow and malnutrition.

When I arrive at Alex's home he welcomes me and introduces me to some of his children. Alex owns a small  farm which includes dairy, traditional animals an some crops.  At present he is in the process of setting up a chicken run. He is trying to raise the capital to stock it so he can increase his earning by selling chickens. To raise the extra revenue, his ox ferries maize and other commodities for other farmers. While we are walking round his farm Alex shares with me the challenges of being a small scale farmer and how they could be solved.  

 "Though we have got the co operative societies it is not everyone who benefits. In fact very few people benefit.We are told that we have to add on to the contribution from the government but most small scale farmers have difficultly raising the revenue and the money required to by commodities so in terms of the expected yields from the farmer most of the time you don't meet your target. We also have problems with animal disease such as foot and mouth. We have traditional animals and small farm crops but the inputs are not enough to sustain us here."

One of Alex's main concerns is providing for his family and ensuring his children are educated.

"I am trying to expand and carry out such projects to be able to meet the school fees and look after my family and dependents. I am providing for a family of seven and seven dependents. Relatives passed away and we are looking after their children and trying to meet their educational needs. We have a lot of children in boarding school and that is my main concern how to raise the fees.  Once they are educated and employed they will be able to look after themselves to give them opportunities to help them see what is better for them in life.."

When I ask Alex about the economy he believes things are changing but very slow progress is being made.

"People are talking and people need to talk. A lot of aid has come into the country and people are benefiting but there is still a lot of poverty. I do believe with the right government and leadership our people and the economy will be empowered. If they want to see Zambia grow the small scale farmer needs assistance and they must embrace the idea of helping us graduate from the level we are at to where we can fend for themselves because, right now, we are just crawling."

Later I visit Benett, another small scale farmer. When I arrive at his home the children run to find him. He is watching football with his friends. I wait for him under a tree with a number of his dependents and children. I try my hand at a little baby sitting. Everything goes well until the baby turns round and looks at me. I try to distract her with my driver's car keys but to no avail. She just wants back to a familiar face again.

When Bennet comes, he greets me and talks easy about his work as a small scale farmer.  Mostly he echos the problems that Alex has already outlined such as the difficulty of getting loans to improve and increase their productivity. He also echos Alex's aspiration, to make enough money so he can support his family and educate his children.

On a lighter note he talks about his love for football and the Chelsea football team. He tells me that Chelsea was losing when the children had called him.  It is clear to me that he is itching to get back, to check out the score, so I finish up the interview, wish him well and tell him that I hope his favourite team, Chelsea, wins. 

Meeting the Irish Ambassador

In the last few days I have been extremely busy conducting interviews, meeting people and visiting a number of farms, schools, orphanages and churches in the area of Chisamba. I have spoken with a number of people and recorded their views and opinions for a radio documentary on food security and issues that are helping and hindering food security in Zambia.

During such visits I have had the privilege to meet the Irish Ambassador of Zambia, His Excellency, Tony Cotter. I arrived at the Irish Embassy offices last Friday afternoon. I had been informed beforehand that the offices would be closed but His Excellency had kindly agreed to meet me there on his return from Mazabuka, aware that he was unavailable during the rest of my stay in Zambia.  

I arrived at the Embassy a little early.  Just outside the gates I was about to prop myself on a low wall, to catch a few rays, when Marylee, the second secretary, invited me in to wait in His Excellency’s office. A short time after the Ambassador arrived. He shook my hand and in true gentlemanly style apologized for being a little late. 

Shaking off his jacket he settled into a chair next to me and asked me how things were in Donegal. I imparted some information about myself, ICRfm and the radio documentary I was producing thanks to the Simon Cumbers Media Fund and Inishowen Community Radio. He told me a little about his role but when he admitted being from Cork a brief discussion ensued about the All Ireland final that took place the previous Sunday. As I am originally from Tyrone I had been quietly supporting Down in the final and didn't really want to say too much about it. 

Still, one has to give credit where credit is due, and as the Ambassador was grinning from ear to ear I didn't want to burst his bubble, so I agreed with him that Cork did well, considering it was fifteen years since they had won!  (I didn't tell him I was feeling a little sore for Down. After all Sam Maguire is now so much part of Ulster football it doesn't even have to pay rent and sure even Sam is entitled to a holiday!) It was clear from His Excellency that he hoped Sam and the Liam McCarthy cup will take up permanent residency in Cork but they probably will have to wait another fifteen years if Tyrone has anything to do with it! 

Ok... rant over. Thankfully His Excellancy didn't hold it against me as he gave me a very good and thorough interview on the work of Ireland and Irish Aid in Zambia.

In his interview the Ambassador spoke about the very long standing relationship Ireland has with Zambia and the positive ongoing relationship with the people of Zambia.  He explained how the Ireland-Zambia relationship was initiated at the beginning of the last century by the arrival of the Irish missionaries when they became very involved particularly in education and health in Zambia. His Excellency applauded their work and was keen to publicly acknowledge the enormous and unique contribution made by the missionaries not only in Zambia but Africa and the rest of the developing world. He said “The Irish missionaries leave a legacy behind them and it should not be forgotten."

On speaking of the relationship of Ireland and Zambia he recalled how he met the First President of the Republic of Zambia, President Kenneth Kaunda, who was in office from 1964 until 1991 shortly after he arrived.  President Kenneth Kaunda talked about the particular support given by the Irish missionaries, especially the support he and his family received while he was in custody himself.  As a consequence, Ireland was the first country he visited in 1964 which highlighted the strong relationship that had developed between Ireland and Zambia at that time. 

His Excellency went on to highlight the work achieved over the last three decades and how Irish aid has made a significant contribution to a number of areas education, health and communities here.

  Dr. Kenneth Kaunda (right), Patron of Habitat for Humanity Zambia, greeting the Irish Ambassador to Zambia, Mr. Tony Cotter at a project launch to build houses for at least 320 orphaned and vulnerable children, one of the many projects Ireland and Irish Aid supports in Zambia.  

He also commended a number of non-government organizations for their own unique contribution, organizations such as Concern, Self Help Africa, Camara and many others. He talked about the significant contribution that has been made to Zambia economy by the private sector referring to the areas of agribusiness, tourism and industry, creating employment and development opportunities that contributed to the overall support from Ireland to the development of Zambia.

In the view of Irish aid, education is key to development. The Ambassador stressed that development is not possible without good quality education. Education is the primary focus for Irish Aid’s programme in Zambia. The fund aims to improve access to education and increase enrolment by building new schools and expanding existing ones; improve the quality of education through increased teacher training and deployment, development new curricula and educational materials.  In the last 5 years 2,000 classroom and over 5,000 teachers has been put in place in the educational system in Zambia. Irish Aid also supports a number of community-based organizations that work in the education sector. 

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Aid project that helps children orphaned by AIDS in a large slum on the edge of Kabwe, Zambia.

On the HIV/AIDS catastrophy of 1984 he referred to the one million men woman and children that had died. This meant that the AIDS virus had wiped out a whole country of doctors nurses teachers accountants, all the professions you need to build a country. The virus has had a devastating and long lasting impact on Africa as a whole. However progress has being made and treatment facilities have improved and Zambia is likely to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) on gender aid and education.

On hunger the Ambassador reported 45% of children under 15 in Zambia suffer from stunted growth due to malnutrition. He talked about the success of the social cash transfer programme that makes a small payment to selected persons, equivalent to seven euro a month that is making a huge impact on the families’ lives and livelihood. Prior to this payment each household helped by the scheme only got one meal per day, now each family is receiving 3 meals a day and accessing education. For a very small payment to each family the impact of this programme has been substantial. It also enables families to buy small household animals such as chicken calf's pigs which may seem very little but provides the families to make money and climb out of the poverty trap that they are in.

An irrigation project funded by Irish Aid

The Ambassador recognized the strong economic progress made in Zambia over the last five years, a growth that is more than 6%, but continues to see the need for Irish Aid to reach those sections of the population who remain most vulnerable to poverty, including rural communities, families affected by HIV/AIDS, hunger, women, children and others.

Finishing off the interview he offered his aspirations and hope for Zambia, his fondness for the Zambian people and his wishes and beliefs on how the country can and will succeed. He also offered his aspirations for the Cork football and hurling GAA teams and a tongue in cheek message for Donegal GAA supporters. To hear what he had to say I will be posting the date and time of the documentary on this blog before it is aired on ICRfm.ie and on www.icrfm.ie

Wheat harvesting in Zambia

 If I had arrived any later in Chisamba I may have missed out on the combine harvesting season. It begins in the last week in September and a few days ago I noted the combines in the fields.

The principal cash crop in Zambia is corn, which is also a traditional staple food.
Other important crops are soybeans, cotton, sugar cane, sunflower seeds, wheat,
and tobacco. Most crop production is rain-fed rather than irrigated, mainly because
irrigation is too costly for most Zambian, therefore agricultural output is highly
correlated with rainfall.

The cropping industry in Zambia as risky, due to its dependence on
rainfall. Precision farming on irrigated land is, by contrast, very attractive
given favourable climate conditions that allow two crops a year to be
harvested.

Zambeef Products PLC Group is one of the largest agi-businesses in Zambia and the region, involved in the production, processing, distribution and retailing of beef, pork, chickens, eggs, milk, dairy products, edible oils, flour and bread throughout Zambia and West Africa.

The company is also one of the largest cropping operations in Africa with 5 000 hectares under irrigation of row crops. Managing Director Francis Grogan of Zambeef farm invited me to get a closer look and experience the harvesting of the wheat at first hand.

Inside the cab of the combine the wheat fields stretched as far as the eye could see.

As a farmer's daughter, I couldn't help but think of my father who spent his whole life farming in Co.Tyrone. He might not have thought much of the heat but he would have loved the experience of sitting up in the cab   watching and listening to the drone of a 30ft head in front of him trash and feed the golden locks of wheat in through the moving blades to produce tonnes of wheat grain at high speed behind his back.

According to the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture, of a total of 7.5mn ha of land,
4.2mn ha (58%) is classified as having medium-to-high potential for agricultural
production, and 12% is suitable for arable production. However, only an estimated
14% of this is currently cultivated.

The cropping industry is still dominated by small scale farmers with holdings of 1-5
ha, and producing mainly cotton, millet and sorghum, as well as a large proportion of
its corn and sunflowers. According to the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture, there are
about a dozen large commercial farmers in the country’s cropping industry.

Zambia’s underutilised, fertile soil, and access to water (Zambia has access to 40% of Sub-
Sahara Africa’s water resources), combined with favourable prevailing weather
conditions, make Zambia a very attractive crops producer. All these factors,combined with global trends in the cropping industry, have led Zambeef to continue investing heavily in expanding its cropping operations.

 Back at the mill plant  on Zambeef farm the grains of wheat flow from the trucks and stored in huge bins as shown below.

 The wheat is milled into flour

 

 and packed into trucks to be delivered to the various outlets.

The Zambian National Farmer's Union (ZNFU) report that 2010 has been a good year in terms of food production as the country has been boasting of a bumper harvest of maize. The same is expected regarding wheat and they stress that the benefit of being self-sufficient in wheat production should be well appreciated especially in view of recent global developments. In Russia there has been a ban of grain exports after drought and wildfires destroyed crop-growing areas to protect domestic consumption. This has resulted in rising wheat prices and high food costs. This development goes to underline the importance of safeguarding domestic production of essential agricultural commodities such as wheat, maize, soya beans, etc. because although local prices will rise in response to regional and global developments, they are still bound to remain cheaper than imports.

This morning I met with Mr Ndambo Ndambo, Executive Director of the Zambian National Farmer's Union (ZNFU).  The ZNFU is the largest farming organization in Zambia. It is the 'voice' for all farmers in Zambia and represents the entire agricultural industry.

The ZNFU's mission is to promote and protect the interest of members as farmers, individuals corporation/companies and other organisations involved in the business of farming in order to achieve sustainable economic and social development.

Mr Ndambo spoke about the work of the ZNFU and the issues concerning Zambia's food security in relation to the needs and productivity of its members. Mr Ndambo explained that the current situation is not so much about food security as food insecurity. The situation is never constant and there is always a fear of shortage. Mr Ndambo stressed it is essential to work closely with the government on behalf of all farmers to inform and enhance communication so that consistent policies can be developed that will encourage and motivate farmers to be productive and continue to sustain food security.

He also stressed the importance of working closely with his members and keeping communication lines open  via meetings, local press, radio and the union's own magazine, The Zambian Farmer. Communication with the commercial farmer and the small farmer is very different. Commercial farmers are often contacted by email while the small scale farmer will need to be contacted in person and a huge amount of investment has been spent to keep small holders informed and encouraged.

In Africa the human factor is enormously important in the development of agriculture because of the lack of skills and knowledge of modern farming techniques and technologies. Training and mentoring is a very necessary part of the developmental process.

On such example is the story of  Medalido Makombe who has been struggling for seven years to find spares for his boom sprayer. Fortunately, his managed to order spares from India and get them delivered to Makombe farms, about 45 Kilometres south of Kabwe. Medalido is among the few privileged farmers that have been browsing the Internet to get information on various issues affecting them as farmers.

                                                                                                  
The Farmers Internet Café, hosted by the Kabwe Farmers Association was established by the Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU), through support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the USA’s department of Agriculture through the Education Development and Democracy Initiative (EDDI) programme.
The basis of these projects, observes Mr Ndambo, was to link the mother body with affiliates at district level while at the same time providing access to information to individual union members.
Mr. Ndambo said: “We initially wanted to build the capacity of our members in this new technology so that they can be writing e-mails to us directly if they wished and also inquire about the various services that the ZNFU is offering to the members.”
“Our members have benefited greatly,” he said: “For instance, farmers were able to compare the prices of Tobacco in Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia on the Internet and through this network they were able to negotiate for a better price.”


 

When I asked Mr Ndambo about the differences in terms of concerns and need between the commercial and small farmer Mr Ndambo pointed out that their concerns were fundamentally the same such as better seed, soil, and prices. They both need access to markets and credit.  The rising costs of key inputs such as diesel, farm equipment, raw materials, electricity etc. has continued to erode the viability of farming while the status of classification of agriculture for value added tax purposes remain punitive. Mr Ndambo argues that all agriculture products should be VAT zero rated so that the Vat on all the key inputs linked directly to production should be recovered. Government strategies need to improve and support all farmers to create a sustainable prosperous and productive agricultural sector that will play a huge part in eliminating the fear of food shortage.

Aileen in Zambia

I got lucky today. I managed to hitch a ride into Lusaka. My mission was to do a little networking and set up a few interviews for a documentary series that will be broadcast on Inishowen Community Radio as part of this project. However, my 'lift' was with a parent who had to do a school run first. Climbing in, I sandwiched myself between the kids, school bags and lunch boxes and listened to the children chattering away to each other. They looked smart in their navy shorts and baby blue shirts. Dark blue hats shielded their eyes and most of their faces but I couldn't help but notice they were excited and eager to get to school. When we arrived I had the pleasure of meeting the Principal and Chairperson of the Martin House Trust School.

 

The school is built on land donated by the farming community in Chisamba area.  It was set up to meet the education needs of children in the surrounding areas. The alternative was to send the children to weekly boarding school many miles away. The school employ eight staff including teachers and custodial staff.

Pictured above, from left, are some children who attend Martin House Trust School, the Chairperson, Classroom assistant and the Principal. The school has created employment for local people and is giving them an opportunity to work within their own community.

Incidentally, the classroom assistant is a local lady who was a cleaner at the school and is now training to be a classroom assistant. When I took this photograph I explained to the classroom assistant that I would put it up on my blog . She smiled politely, nodded and walked back into the classroom.

It wasn't until I was walking back to my 'lift' that the Principal pointed out to me that the class room assistant was an excellent asset to the school but had never seen colour TV never mind a computer in her life and therefore would have no understanding of the terminology, such as Internet or 'blog.' As I continued on my journey to Lusaka I was feeling a little annoyed with myself for presuming that the young lady understood what a 'blog' was. The more I thought about it, I only hoped she had no understanding of the word 'bog', like we do in Donegal, just in case I insulted her as well! It certainly was not my intention.

However, it won't be long before the class assistant and the whole school will be familiar with such terminology as it is my understanding they are getting a brand new computer for their school in the next few weeks.

As for me, I spent the rest of my day in Lusaka networking and arranging meetings with a number of people I wish to talk to about food security and related issues in the next few days.

Aileen in Zambia

I am presently in Zambia, thanks to the Simon Cumbers Media fund, to explore a number of issues relating to food security. 

It took me twenty five hours to get here from Donegal. I arrived at dawn, at Lusaka airport, as a perfectly formed blood-red sun was slow rising over the terminal building The sight of it filled me with delight. Outside the terminal building, a piece of paper with my name on it, held high above a man’s head, filled me with relief. His name was Musaka. He was waiting for me to take me to Chisamba, one of the largest commercial farming districts of Zambia.

Soon we were bumping along the Ngwerere dirt track.  Through orange dust and tired eyes I tried to focus on my surroundings. Vast areas of unused land lay out before me. Every now and then small clusters of thatched huts appeared in the middle of nowhere. Nearby, banana and paw- paw trees bear fruit and dark green patches on the ground grow vegetables such as cabbage, rape and tomatoes. The huts and small holdings are scattered throughout the vast landscape for miles and miles, a sign of life but scarce infrastructure.

It isn’t until we hit the commercial farming districts, which is predominately run by white farmers, most of European extraction, that golden wheat stretches out in abundance as far as the eye can see.

It is this golden wheat and Zambia’s vast tracks of arable land, abundant water and topography that has drawn me back to report on the issues that impact on Zambia’s food security.

Musaka maneuvers out onto the Great North road which is the main road between the capital and the Northern Copperbelt.  Corn and wheat mature for miles around under a number of central irrigation pivots rotating and hissing in the fields. 

The heat stifles me and I long for a cool shower as I gaze at the golden fields of wheat. Musaka beeps his horn frantically. Alarmed I look up ahead. I fear there is something wrong but everything seems to be in order. A huge farm truck with ZAMBEEF written on the side of it is approaching us.

Musaka continues to wave wildly and honk the horn. The truck passes us. The driver is waving frantically at Musaka. Musaka laughs out loud and turns his head towards me. "My brother," he says. 

Thank god for that I think. I nod, letting him know I understand and relax back into my seat again. 

Family and greetings are very important to the Zambian people. So is employment. So is food security. Musaka and his brother are lucky. They have employment made possible by commercial farming. There are also acres and acres of food production made possible by commercial farming.

Gazing at the cultivated farmland all around me I can’t help but think of the vast amount of unused land I also gazed at in the last 50k. Is the answer to food security right under our noses and, and if so, what are the issues preventing Zambia to potentially becoming a self-sustainable breadbasket.