Zimbabwe: Tobacco Board to Decentralise Services

Source from:  All Africa 12/06/2010

The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board will decentralise its services and establish centres across Zimbabwe. At present TIMB mainly operates from Harare. In an interview yesterday, TIMB chief executive Dr Andrew Matibiri said: "The decentralisation exercise is in line with results from studies done by investigators on the feasibility of establishing such centres nearer tobacco producing areas where farmers can readily access services. "Farmers will not need to come to Harare for some of the services." Dr Matibiri said TIMB will establish a centre in each of the key tobacco producing provinces with the exception of Mashonaland West, where there may be need for at least two centres in Karoi, Chinhoyi or Chegutu owing to the large numbers of growers in there. For Manicaland the centre will be established in Rusape, for Mashonaland East in Marondera, while for Mashonaland Central the centre will be in Mvurwi, said Dr Matibiri. "The easiest aspect will be on the issue of the registration of growers that has in recent seasons spilled into the planting season as farmers faced challenges in travelling to Harare to secure grower's numbers. "These centres have to be established before the opening of the tobacco season next year," Dr Matibiri said. He explained that the centres will facilitate booking for sales and advise farmers on days to make deliveries to auction floors. This will ensure farmers spend as little time as possible at the auction floors in Harare instead of sleeping there for days because they will not have booked their crop for sale in advance. "The points will also act as centres for training on how to grow and market tobacco and will also be used for disbursement of tobacco inputs." The number of tobacco growers in Zimbabwe has ballooned from 8 000 to 60 000 over the past 10 years due to the land reform programme. Tobacco has become the crop of choice for many farmers as it fetches good prices. Enditem