Regional Markets

Regional Markets for Local Development
• Entrepreneurial mindset. The dependency mindset—i.e. being overly reliant on free
services provided by external actors—among the communities was tackled from the
start. The aim was to reorient them towards a business-minded approach. Without this
mindset, the farmers’ commitment to the business partnership could be compromised.
Impact of the intervention
Pro-poor development
Banana production in Zimbabwe can be a profitable venture with gross margins of over
60%. An established banana plantation can be productive for more than a decade. The
potential is there, but the majority of the association members are so poor they cannot
afford the fertilisers, chemicals and irrigation required to achieve maximum yields
and profits. Nevertheless, even without irrigation and some key inputs, gross margins
increased from USD 200 to USD 700 per year through the intervention.
Gender
Of the 2,500 smallholder farmers involved, 32% are women. Women farmers had the
greatest need for an easily accessible market. They could not spend the ten days required
to sell bananas at the high-value city markets (needed for transport, ripening and sale
in Harare). Venturing to faraway markets was therefore a domain of the men. Since
the new buyers are now buying at the farm-gate, the situation changed. More women
are profiting from the cultivation of bananas, and more women have joined the farmer
associations (up from 24% to 32%). With the increased income opportunities, women
can now hire additional labourers to supplement household labour.
Food security
The increased income from banana raised the purchasing power of the involved households,
thereby improving their food security situation. During the countrywide food
shortages in 2008, there was an increase in household-to-household trade of banana
flower and fresh banana, which helped meet household food requirements. In the
high-income urban markets, companies are now able to meet consumer demand due
to increased supply by smallholders. Higher banana consumption is likely to contribute
positively to overall public health.
Food quality
Smallholders were able to supply better quality bananas through the training on quality,
use of improved varieties, better plantation management, access to inputs on credit,
grading standards, improved transport logistics, and access to packaging and ripening
facilities. Before the companies could mostly find low grade bananas, while now 60% of
the bananas delivered are of high grade quality.
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