The Sunday Mail
Business Reporter
The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board has said it is in the process of finalising the suppliers’ contracts of inputs to be given to tobacco growers under Government’s $70 million contract scheme.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail Business on Thursday, TIMB chief executive Dr Andrew Matibiri said he hopes the contracts, as recommended by the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe, will be finalised soon.
TIMB is administering Government’s tobacco contract scheme to support 51 000 small scale growers. Already, 11 000 growers have received the inputs.
“With the late rain season, we should be able to catch up as the contracts are being finalised,” Dr Matibiri said.
Now dominated by small scale growers who benefited under the land reform programme, the tobacco sector produced 251 million kilogrammes of the golden leaf during the last season. This was the highest output in the country’s history.
Meanwhile, farmers have welcomed Government’s move to pay 20 percent of their produce in foreign currency during the next marketing season.
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr John Mangudya told our sister paper, Business Weekly, that tobacco and cotton farmers will be paid 20 percent of their proceeds in forex.
Government will retain the remainder to help meet imports of essential commodities.
This follows intense lobbying from farmers who have been demanding to be paid in hard currency to cushion themselves from price distortions resulting from the multi-tier exchange system.
While the authorities have maintained that the quasi bond note currency and the Real Time Gross Settlement balances will remain at par with the United State dollar, the multi-tier exchange system has hit the farmers hard.
Before the Government’s move, there were fears that production of Zimbabwe’s largest foreign currency earner would be hurt.
“It is a welcome development although farmers would have wanted a higher retention threshold,” said Mr Wonder Chabikwa, chairman of the Federation of Farmers Union.
“We now have a situation whereby suppliers of agro chemicals are demanding foreign currency. This therefore, is a step in the positive direction.”
Cotton Producers and Marketers Association president, Mr Stewart Mubonderi concurred with Mr Chabikwa, saying the move is “a good starting point” and that there is need for continuous engagement with the authorities.
“While we feel more needs to be done, this is a very good starting point. This will certainly motivate farmers,” he said.a
