Zimbabwe: Extend Loan Facilities to Tobacco Growers - Govt

Source from:  The Herald 09/26/2011

GOVERNMENT has called upon the banking sector to extend loan facilities to tobacco growers to increase production. Agriculture Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Dr Joseph Made made the call at the 2011 Tobacco Sales Floor Tobacco Growers' Awards on Wednesday. In a speech read on his behalf by the ministry's permanent secretary, Mr Ngoni Masoka, Dr Made said Government was aware of challenges being faced by farmers in the tobacco sector. "Government is fully aware of challenges being experienced in the tobacco sector, ranging from funding of production, adequate knowledge of growing the crop, price distortions and farmer inconveniences associated with the marketing of tobacco," he said. He encouraged the financial sector to chip in and assist farmers. "Beneficiaries of such assistance should repay loans to establish a sound working relationship with the banking institutions," said Dr Made. He said agriculture and mining were the dominant contributors to economic growth last year. Agriculture contributed 33,9 percent, while mining contributed 47 percent to the economic growth. Dr Made said tobacco alone had the potential to contribute substantially to the GDP, since local tobacco had a good reputation and was widely sought after by renowned world markets. Senior advisor to the Reserve Bank Governor Dr Munyaradzi Kereke, won this year's Tobacco Grower of the Year award in the commercial sector. Dr Kereke said there was nowhere in the world where governments were not funding agriculture. "Farmers in Europe, Japan and America are being financially supported and their governments have a strong budget for agriculture," he said. "Now IMF advises our Government to cut down its budget for agriculture, especially for A2 farmers. I do not agree with such advice and it is grossly poisoned advice, especially for a developing country such as Zimbabwe that heavily depends on agriculture. Suspension of support to farmers will lead to over dependency on donors." Dr Kereke said A2 farmers should be funded like any other farmers because what they produced was consumed by other sectors. "Everyone needs food, clothing and fuel and all these are products from the agriculture sector," he said. Dr Kereke said nearly 65 percent of EU's budget was directed towards funding farmers and this shows the significance attached by the governments towards their farming. Each year, Americans use US$120 to US$140 billion support to farmers under various schemes," he said. Dr Kereke won a tractor, boom sprayer, tobacco seed and chemicals, among other prizes. He sold 70 000kg of flue cured tobacco worth US$182 668,84. Dr Kereke said he was glad to have won the prestigious award and said it was through hard work and planning. "In tobacco production, everything should be done accordingly on time," he said. You have to plan, procure inputs, plant and carry out every operation timeously." Dr Kereke said attaining good quality leaf should be the aim of every tobacco grower. "I am proud to be Zimbabwean and the award has shown that resettled farmers have the capacity to produce. This is ample proof that we can do it," he said. The first prize in the small-scale sector was scooped by Mr Nigel Dzurunu, who sold 10 513kg of tobacco worth US$41 843,38 at an average price of US$3,98 per kg. Mr Dzurunu also won a tractor, seed and chemicals. Enditem