Regional Markets

Regional Markets for Local Development
main cash commodity has a significant
positive effect on food security
and helps reduce poverty at household
level. It has been reported that
food is moving fromother districts
(Mazoe) for sale in the cotton producing
districts (Mbire, Muzarabani),
which may be an indicator of increasing
food security in these districts.
Organisation of farmers is one of the
key focus points, but the other activities—like
the enhancing agricultural A family in Mbire District, Mashonaland Central,
practises and business trainings—are Zimbabwe sits on harvested cotton before bailing for sale.
naturally interconnected. The bottom
line of higher producer prices is more money in the producers’ pockets, more food on
their tables, and children who are receiving education. More about the farmers efforts
on price negotiating can be found below in the section on prices.
Infrastructure and governance
There was a great need for fresh leadership and organisational capacity in the cotton
sector. Across the country, smallholder farmers were not happy with the support given
by their industry organisations. It was felt that the two main farmer unions—the ZFU
and the Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers’ Union (ZCFU)—were not defending farmers
interests adequately. In 2010 a new body, the Federal Cotton Producers Association,
was subsequently formed. By connecting and participating in the initiatives like the
AAIZ and FACHIG project, the FCPA could quickly establish itself as the muchneeded
defender of smallholder interests. The success of FCPA clearly shows how
important effective collective organisation is. FCPA convinced farmers not to sell their
cotton in the 2009/10 season at below-cost prices, and provided them with information
and proposed access to warehouse receipts. Ultimately the farmers could secure a
much fairer price than without collective representation. The FCPA’s bargaining efforts
resulted further into two of the FCPA leaders being called to sit in the Agricultural
Marketing Authority board, which deals with all agricultural marketing issues. The
FCPA has been registered as a ‘Trust’, in order to keep assisting farmers, until its registration
for ‘Association Status’ is processed.
Producer and consumer prices
Prices of input and the selling price of cotton are central to the smallholders’ struggle
to secure livelihoods. Poor communication systems and strong monopolistic tendencies
in the industry make the situation even more complicated. The political chaos and economic
meltdown in Zimbabwe has reinforced the buyers’ control over input. The cotton
Photo: Joel Musarurwa
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