The Zimbabwean government on Wednesday unveiled a $161 million input support programme to enable farmers to grow maize and small grains, including rearing livestock for the 2013/2014 farming season.
Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa revealed the announcement in the capital Harare during a press conference which was also attended by Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Dr Joseph Made.
He said the basic input package would comprise 10 kilogrammes maize/small grain seed, 50kg compound D fertiliser, 50kg Ammonium Nitrate fertilizer and 50kg, for each household.
The input support scheme will benefit communal, old resettlement, small scale and A1 farmers with a combined coverage of 1,6 million households.
“In the drier areas, farmers may not necessarily need crop input packs, but would rather prefer support to cater for their livestock. In such areas, a livestock support pack comprising drugs, vaccines and stock feed equivalent to the value of grain input package would be availed instead,” the two ministers said.
“Government is therefore, pleased to advise that an amount of $40.
million is being disbursed to the fertilizer industry towards initial payment for supplies required under the agriculture input support programme,” he said.
“Furthermore, government is also availing some $10 million to the seed houses towards payment of 2013/14 support programme.”
The government will be working with the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) and other co-operating partners in the scheme.
He said that the Food and Agricultural Organisation in partnership with other donors had its indicated readiness to partner Government with a US$19,25 million contribution targeting smallholder 77 800 farmers.
To that end, US$157,9 million would go towards finance production and or importation of inputs with US$39 084 000 for seed, US$50 483 500 for compound D fertiliser, US$56 997 500 for AN fertiliser and US$11 399 500 for lime.
Chinamasa said $9,2 million owed to farmers by Grain Marketing Board had also been cleared and US$530 000 would go towards the rehabilitation of the District Development Fund while US$2,6 million has been earmarked to improve the handling capacity of the Grain Marketing Board.
He also said the Government was aware of the need to clear outstanding payments to input manufacturers for last year’s supplies in the course of implementing the programme.
“Hence, in addition to the input support programme, it is critical that attention is given to outstanding payments to input suppliers which stand at US$11,8 million arising from previous seasons.”
The Government also secured US$120 million private sector support for production of inputs by seed and fertiliser firms, which may be needed to augment imports.
Made also said the 2013/14 season was the last season where Government would provide direct input support to farmers as focus would now turn to subsidising manufacturers to lower input costs.
“For a long time we have been saying subsidising the manufacturers is the preferred form because it assists us as agriculture not to be involved in the day-to-day allocation of inputs to farmers.
“If we subsidise the manufacturers of inputs to lower the cost of production the farmers will be able to purchase the inputs on their own. (Also) if the farmers are paid timeously they will at least be able to purchase their own inputs, that is how farming should be,” said Minister Made.
He pointed out that the Cabinet agreed at Tuesday’s meeting that going forward the real anchor will be mechanisation and irrigation development to mitigate difficulties in terms of the staple crop – maize.
As such focus will be on developing full-scale and supplementary irrigation for winter cropping.
The government will also be working with the banking sector to finance farmers.
Banks last week indicated a total of US$720 million had been set aside to support agriculture.
Negotiations are still in progress with the banking sector on how A2 and commercial farmers can be assisted. There are indications that most agricultural financial facilities are being finalised.
“At the moment we have not yet concretised support to A2 farmers, but obviously some of them will make their own arrangements but we would like this arrangement to be more concrete so that banks tell us specifically what they will put to agriculture,” Minister Chinamasa said.
Agriculture is traditionally the backbone of Zimbabwe’s economy and is a large contributor to the country‘s GDP.
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