Kahe Horticultural Cooperative Society showing how small hold
farmers can transform lives and move people out of poverty through market-oriented
agriculture. The
138- KAHOCOSO members began working with FASO Tanzania in January 2014 to
improve their business skills and diversify into a modern markets opportunity,
they were linked and signed impressive
contract with Frigoken
Export Company to produce French beans and about sixteen acreage were grown.
Frigoken provides the farmers
with seeds and guarantees to buy their harvest at an agreed
price.
As the first harvest begin in October 2014, with the price
of 750 shillings per kilogram, the farmers recognize that French beans bring spanking
prosperity to their community. About 14,456 kilograms of French beans were
collected and sold within the three months of October, November and December.
"We have never grown French beans neither accessing export markets before FASO
intervention, we were very worried but now we see the bright future for
success." said Nelson Mmanyi
“We can see that it will be a prospective source of revenue
for us,” said farmer Dina Saidi, a 50-year-old mother of five children. “It
will help me pay school fees, acquire clothes and complete to build my small house.
It is something that will raise our living standards.”
The main challenges are including inadequate
agronomic techniques, shortage of skilled labour, low awareness of standards
(Global GAP etc), lack of infrastructure that complies with the market
standards, high cost of inputs and counterfeit inputs which make difficult to
control high incidence of diseases and pests. Quality is further compromised by
inadequate infrastructure such as grading sheds and cold rooms at farm level,
poor and insufficient irrigation infrastructure but we thank FASO now
addressing some of the challenges. Said
Chaiman, Mr Erasto Mlay.
Through Inclusive Modern Market (IMM) in Fresh Fruits and
Vegetables Project (FFV), hundreds of farmers have the potential to capitalize
on a similar opportunity, aim to double the fresh fruits and vegetables incomes
to more than 500 farmers in Moshi
District. Since launching in January 2014, the program has laid the keystone
for a thriving sustainable industry that can help farming families lift
themselves out of poverty.
FASO Tanzania, helps farmers to increase their productivity
and create new market opportunities for their French beans . This work begins
with forming or strengthening Commercial Farmers Organizations (CFOs), which allow many of farmers to
sell vegetables collectively and improve their bargaining power. “There was
never a market for our vegetables, so we would just eat few vegetables and the rest were left to rot" Said
Erasto Mlay, Chairman of the KAHOCOSO.
Through the Commercial Farmers Organizations (CFOs), FASO Tanzania facilitates
training sessions for farmers on key skills. Many of these trainings take place
on demo plots, where farmers receive hands-on experience in preparing the land,
controlling pests and diseases, managing the soil and harvesting of vegetables.
Collaborating with other actors, also
provide business training for the farmer business groups so that they can
interact with buyers as equals and create more income for their members.
“Many farmers just
didn’t believe it was possible to all of a sudden sell their French beans in
the export company,” Said Catherine Macha “It wasn’t believed until they
actually saw, with their own eyes, the company coming here to collect our French beans, it is when started believing. Now, farmers thinking
to expand their plots" Said Elinami Mtei.
FASO is linking farmers with financial institutions to offer
better access to credit and facilitate Village Commercial Bank (VICOBA) in CFOs.
The fund can help smallholders to invest in their farms and take advantage of a
market opportunity for their vegetables. Also, link them with the certified
input dealers to avoid counterfeit inputs and enable collective purchase.
This remarkable success story is proof that smallholder farmers
can be part of the solution to global food security, helping to feed the world.
But they cannot do it alone. What they need is that rich and poor countries
alike invest in and support agricultural and rural development, creating the
conditions to move poor rural people out of subsistence farming and into the modern
market places.
In my many years of working in agriculture and rural
development, two things have become increasingly evident. The first is that
farming at any scale is a business, and smallholders and producers must be
treated as entrepreneurs. The second is that businesses need clear linkages
along the value chain, from production to processing, marketing and,
ultimately, to consumption. When these links are in place, wonderful things
begin to happen to farmers.
Table:
|
Months
|
Kilograms
|
Price
sell
|
|
October
|
4258
|
1973300
|
|
November
|
5015
|
3510500
|
|
December
|
5183
|
27728
|
