Small Scale Farmers Need Support

Small-scale revolution

AGRA's Ngongi said while he recognized the term "green revolution" recalls memories of failed agricultural investments, "Running away from the word does not solve productivity problems. We cannot tinker around the margins. Africa's agricultural problems need massive investments - nothing short of a revolution."

Solutions need to be tailored to small-scale producers' needs, he added. If smaller packages of fertilizers, seeds and tools were available, people who can only afford smaller quantities are more likely to buy.

The readily available packages weighing up to 100kg are impractical for farmers - most often women - travelling in precarious transport over long distances on poor roads, Ngongi told IRIN.

Ngongi told IRIN farmers are now forced to travel long distances to get seeds and fertilizers because there are not enough small traders in rural areas. "In western Kenya where AGRA has implemented agro-leadership programmes to train traders, farmers are now walking on average 4km to buy inputs versus 17km before."

Cash-strapped governments are unable to back loans to small farms, according to AGRA. "Banks need risk assurance," Ngongi said, describing a loan-assurance programme in Kenya backed by AGRA and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) that has agreed to loan $50 million to small-scale farmers over three years.

In a recent report on cash transfers in southern Niger, the NGO Save the Children UK wrote: "Providing agricultural inputs alone is not sufficient to help the poorest households increase their food production. These inputs must be accompanied by economic support (cash or food) so that able-bodied adults can spend sufficient time working in their own fields."

Copyright (c) UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2009

Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)