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FARMERS OUTRAGED BY GOVERNMENT TRACTOR TENDER TO NMC

Farmers feel yet again let down by governments move to outsource input subsidies and tractor hire services to national Maize Corporation as from tomorrow, an institution that has not been tested to possess the capacity over and above government ability to deliver such a service to the farmers.

Eastern and southern African farmers forum (ESAFF) says even prior to giving the job to NMC government had always sidelined farmers yet the programme is intended for them. Ntombikayise Phumzile Phakudze of ESAFF says government again this time did not involve them before deciding to give the business to NMC yet once more they are the ones on the receiving end when it comes to rolling out input subsidies and tractor hire services.

Ms Ntombikayise Phumzile Phakudze (ESAFF Eswatini Chairperson)

She adds that as a forum there is nothing they can do because already the programme rollout is dated to begin tomorrow, a Sunday as per government projections. However ESAFF will be keeping checks and balances on how the programme unfolds with a view to find lasting solutions such as reviving agricultural farmers from the endless inefficiencies of government that have been experienced over years since the programme was piloted.

A fortnight ago agriculture minister Moses Vilakati announced that farmers would no longer deal with the ministry regarding the services in the coming ploughing season                                                                                                      (http://www.pressreader.com/swaziland/swazi-observer/20180614281986083263680) because of the Ministry’s many inefficiencies in delivering services to the farmers, citing some of the problems to be shortage of fuel, delivering seeds and fertilizers to farmers on time and availing the tractors themselves for the actual tilling of the land.

These changes come at a cost to the farmer and ESAFF is not pleased. Fakudze says government in the overall is no longer helping the farmers especially the poor subsistence and small scale ones because inputs have forever been delayed even though farmers had paid early enough in readiness to capture the first rains before the soil dries up as a result of climate change.

At times poor repairs on the tractors cause the delay or the fertilizers and seeds come in haphazard deliveries. Government is still owing farmers tractor hours from last year and there is no indication how NMC would respite these timeously given that it has its own mandate to execute.

Hardest hit are the elderly who earn E400 every three months. NMC has introduced its own settings of fees to make profit out of the service and also cover its costs farmers pay E3000 for maize seeds and fertilizer, E2500 for sorghum seed and fertilizers’, E4000 for sugar beans and fertilizer and pay E250 per hour for tractor hire services.

(Minister of Agriculture: Hon Moses Vilakati)

 Development

Farmers will no longer have to travel to Rural Development Agencies (RDA) for seeds and fertilizer subsidy.  According to Vilakati, farmers will use their farmer cards which are obtained during registration to access their inputs at closer participating agro dealers whose names and locations will be announced by NMC.

Tractor hire services will be accessed from RDAs and agro centers. Farmers are expected to start making payments from July 1 until September 29. They will however continue accessing the tractor hire services as normal and those farmers without standing tractor hours and seeds with fertilizers will be served by NMC after July 1.

Although NMC did not respond to our questionnaire on Thursday it announced its rollout programme with specific timelines                                                                                               (http://www.pressreader.com/swaziland/swazi-observer/20180629/281633895976932). Chief Executive Officer Mr. Sabelo Msibi announced that both the tractor hire and farm inputs subsidy programs would officially begin next week Sunday (July 8) with a nationwide farmer registration exercise which would be conducted by the Swaziland National Agricultural Union (SNAU).

Registration is free and will be conducted in all RDAs country wide as well as in many other designated areas which NMC promised to announce in due course. After registering each farmer will be furnished with an automated input subsidy smart card which will contain individual farmers’ biometric data.

The smart cards, which can only be collected from July 23, can only be collected from July 23 are very important because no farmer will be able to receive farm inputs as well as the tractor hire services if they do not have any.

STORY BY: ACKEL ZWANE