Zimbabwe: RBZ to Review Agric Facility Beneficiaries Achievement

Source from:  The Herald (Harare) 11 February 2008 02/13/2008

THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe will review production achieved by beneficiaries of support received under the Agricultural Sector Productivity Enhancement Facility (Aspef) mid-year. According to the latest monetary policy review statement issued last week, the current Aspef programme would be reviewed on June 30 2008. Central bank governor Dr Gideon Gono, who issued the statement, said all beneficiaries would be expected to show that they put all the support given to them to productive use. Dr Gono said after having sustained farmers over the past four years, through access to concessional finance, under the Aspef window, it had now become necessary that farmers be gradually weaned off. He said it was now essential that farmers should be supported by tailor-made financial packages from their bankers. "The primary motivation out of which Aspef was born, was to hold our farmers' financial hands to cross over the grey era of apprehensions and general inertia by the banks to lend into agriculture during the emotive stages of the land reform programme. "With the land redistribution programme now fully accomplished, it has become necessary that the Reserve Bank tightens its monetary management programmes to contain inflationary pressures. "Banks are called upon to remodify their credit policies and post-lending follow-ups so as to adapt to the unique needs of the agricultural sector," he said. Statistics made available by the central bank show a cumulative amount of $62,2 trillion had been disbursed under Aspef to 25 477 applications as at January 4 this year. Over 90 percent of the funds were directed to tobacco, other crops and livestock, beef, piggery, poultry and support to the horticultural sub-sector. The latest figures represent a marked uptake of the facility from the $3,9 trillion that was disbursed under Aspef for 21 940 applications as at August 31 2007. Aspef was introduced four years ago in order to capacitate farmers in response to realisation that limited access to credit had become the biggest constraint to new farmers, as they sought to firmly establish themselves. It was also acknowledged that without finance no farmer could make meaningful contribution to the country's goal of food self-sufficiency. The funds, which were being disbursed through banks, attracted an interest rate 50 percent per annum but the rate was reviewed to 25 percent per annum on October 1 last year by Dr Gono in the Mid-Term Monetary Policy Statement. Enditem