Farming collapses in Umguza, Nyamandlovu

• Five active farmers left out of 42 in Umguza

• None out of 16 are growing wheat in Nyamandlovu

FARMING in Matabeleland North’s prime agriculture areas of Umguza and Nyamandlovu has virtually collapsed with many farmers leaving their land fallow while the few remaining have abandoned the growing of wheat which is mainly done during this time of the year, Sunday Business has learnt.

A visit to the areas last week revealed that in Umguza area, which is the prime farming area in the province, only five farmers were still active out of the 42 who were resettled in the area in 2000.

In Nyamandlovu area, it was learnt that of the 16 active farmers, none was considering growing wheat this season while only five farmers in Umguza planted the crop.

Officials confirmed that farming activities in the two areas had gone down as farmers complained over viability of the sector in the wake of non-payment for grain delivered to buyers especially by the Grain Marketing Board among other problems.

In an interview, Umguza Irrigation Farmers Association chairman Mr Antony Dube said farming in the area had virtually collapsed due to a number of challenges.

“When we came in here in 2000, we had 42 active famers and we now have five. This is because we are facing a number of challenges like at first, we didn’t have knowledge about farming and we were not doing proper farming,” said Mr Dube.

He said they were now engaging experts to educate them about proper farming methods.
“We want to revive farming here and we are having experts to teach us about the proper farming methods like on the use of chemicals or fertilisers. When agriculture experts came to our field days early this year, they realised that our farming had deteriorated and decided to come and assist us,” he said.

On wheat, he said there were a number of reasons which had led to the decrease in the number of farmers who were interested in the crop.
“First and foremost, the failure by GMB to pay farmers in time has discouraged many from growing wheat this season. As I am talking there are some farmers who are yet to get their payments from GMB for the wheat delivered last year,” said Mr Dube.

He said it was prudent that GMB makes prompt payments so that farmers have enough time to make adequate preparations for the next crop.
Mr Dube said the liquidity challenges affecting other sectors of the economy had not spared the farming sector and farmers needed some form of funding to sustain their businesses.

He urged Government to fund wheat farmers and allow them to pay back after harvesting.
“Wheat production is irrigation intensive and involves many expenses which farmers cannot shoulder on their own. We are not asking for free funding but we urge Government to come up with a loan facility which will allow farmers to pay back at harvest time,” he said.

It costs nearly $3 000 to grow one hectare of wheat.
The amount includes electricity and water charges which continue to cripple the efforts of farmers throughout the country.

Acting district agricultural extension officer for Umguza District Mr Sipho Ndlovu said farmers had also abandoned wheat production especially in Nyamandlovu.

“Of all the 16 farmers who used to grow wheat at the Nyamandlovu Aquifer none of them is considering growing wheat this season.
The story is the same at Umguza Irrigation Lot where only five farmers, out of a possible 40 farmers, are taking up wheat this season,” he said.

A report from the Agritex department indicated that wheat farming in the Umguza area had been on the decline over the last five years.
In 2010, more than 330 hectares were put into wheat production but decreased to 220ha in 2012 and this season only 82ha have been targeted for wheat.

The few farmers who are still active in the areas said inputs were also a major setback in wheat production.
Mrs Virginia Mathe said farmers from the region were disadvantaged compared to those from other areas since they had to get wheat seed and other essential inputs from Harare because they were not readily available in Bulawayo.

“Wheat seed is not easily available in Bulawayo as most seed houses are based in the capital. We rely on agencies who charge unrealistic prices for the products,” said Mrs Mathe.

She urged Government to consider the decentralisation of seed houses so that farmers from the region could directly have access to the companies without necessarily travelling to Harare.

Mrs Mathe, who is targeting planting seven hectares of wheat, also complained that the GMB Bulawayo depot had no proper facilities to store wheat.
Last year she had to incur extra costs of packaging and storing her crop on sheds as the depot had no silo for wheat.

“Our GMB depot cannot buy wheat in bulk as it has no silo for the crop and this discourages farmers from growing a lot of wheat,” she said.
It has also emerged that effects of weather were pushing out farmers from wheat production.

Mr Randell Mark, who had about 20ha of wheat last year, said this winter he was not growing wheat for fear of frost.
“Last year, my 20ha of wheat crop was a complete write-off as a result of frost which hit most farmers at the end of August. It is a risk which I am not prepared to take this time around,” he said.

Mr Dumisani Ncube of Freewill Farm in Umguza said farmers had also been using wrong methods of farming, a situation which had resulted in low production.

“We are now being trained so that we will be kept abreast with new methods of farming,” said Mr Ncube.
A horticultural expert, who was teaching some of the farmers in Umguza last week, Mr Mthokozisi Dlamini, expressed concern over the deteriorating farming standards in Umguza.

“Farming has gone down here and we are now training them basic knowledge on horticulture like on the use of chemicals, application of fertilisers and so on,” said Mr Dlamini.

He said most of them could not afford to buy fertilisers hence they were educating them on the use of locally available resources such as manure.
A tour of the Umguza irrigation farms by the Sunday Business also revealed that most of the prime land was not utilised.

Huge shrubs and grass now occupy the vast tracts of land that was once used to grow various crops for both local and export markets.
Some people in the area said farmers had abandoned farming and were now staying in Bulawayo and South Africa.

The remaining farmers complained that the un-utilised farms had become breeding grounds for pests and diseases.
Irrigation schemes were the worst affected as most framers said they were failing to meet operational costs.

“I use irrigation but the high production costs that include electricity, labour and water are giving me a challenge. Just to irrigate one hectare of maize requires about $2 000,” said Mr Enock Ndlovu from Umguza farms.

Mr Ndlovu also bemoaned the availability of cheap GMO agriculture imports from the neighbouring South Africa that was affecting their farming business.

However, Zimbabwe Farmers Union president Mr Abdul Nyathi commended the move by Government to clear a payment backlog for wheat farmers.
“The $9 million which was recently released by Government to pay wheat farmers is a welcome development which will go a long way in encouraging farmers to take up wheat production in the country,” said Mr Nyathi.

He said, however, the money had come a little too late because the winter wheat planting season was already under way.
Because of the drought and poor farming methods, this year, the country failed to meet its grain needs.

Although the country has traditionally imported wheat, the quantities have continued to go up since more local farmers were abandoning the crop. The situation has also been worsened by millers who find it cheaper to import wheat than buying locally.

The country is also facing a maize shortage and Government said it needed to import over 700 000 tonnes of maize between now and the next harvest in 2016 to avert a food crisis following the dry spell that affected crops in most parts of the country.