Menu ENN Search

Seed vouchers and fairs in Zimbabwe - CRS (Special Supplement 3)

In 2001/2, Zimbabwe experienced one of the worst droughts in ten years. Other factors which contributed to create a food crisis included economic decline, characterised by high inflation and unemployment, reliance on a single staple crop (maize) and detrimental government policies. A high prevalence of HIV/AIDS also contributed to people's vulnerability.

The agricultural sector in Zimbabwe contributes 15% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and employs 70% of the population. Factors limiting crop production include poor access to agricultural inputs, shortage of labour and lack of access to markets with competitive commodity prices. Seed systems in Zimbabwe include the formal, informal and the farmer. The formal system is the second largest in Africa and comprises maize, wheat, hybrid sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers, cotton and vegetable seeds. The informal system focuses on minor crops such as groundnuts, cowpeas, sorghum and pearl millet. For the farmer system, most smallholder farms in remote areas do not have access to seed and depend on their own home saved seeds. The drought had reduced the supply of this seed.

The programme

The CRS response was based on the assumption that seed was available locally but farmers had limited access due to lack of capital. The programme objective was to enhance food and seed security for 9000 households for the 2002/03 cropping season.

CRS established a partnership with a local NGO, CTDT (Community Technology Development Trust), who had agriculture programme experience. A training workshop was carried out, and agricultural recovery committees elected by the community. A seed needs assessment was also carried out, which focused on the quantity of seed of specific crops and the varieties required, in relation to the estimated availability for each. Assessments also served as opportunities to inform and recruit potential vendors. Meetings were held with local communities and commercial seed companies to recruit and educate seed vendors. The committee assisted in identifying vendors.

The general process of the seed fair consisted of event supervision, seller and beneficiary registration, seed quality checking, voucher distribution, voucher exchange, voucher redemption, seller and beneficiary exit interviews.

Outcomes

The programme implemented 19 fairs in six districts, for 22,500 beneficiaries and involving 1347 sellers. A total of 324 MT of seeds were exchanged comprising 31 crop types. Nearly half (48%) of the beneficiaries and 72% of the sellers were women. In the higher productivity agro-ecological zone, 23-25 crops were sold, and 9-15 crops in the drier regions. Most sales were made for maize, which ranged from 23% to 83%. The range of crop varieties on sale was highest for maize with 18 varieties, followed by sorghum (10), groundnuts (9), beans (10) and pearl millet (5). There was evidence of short term positive impact on area planted and crop production.

Only 50-63% of beneficiaries were happy with the site. The fairs were held in one location in each ward, which can be a very large geographical area. This meant that beneficiaries had to walk long distances.

Between 60-90% of beneficiaries considered the quantity of seed available sufficient. There was lower satisfaction in areas where more maize was available but fewer other crops. Most received the seed on time. Very few of the beneficiaries (14%) felt the prices set were negotiable however, even though the price set was to be used as a maximum by sellers. Overall, 14-24% of beneficiaries concluded that the prices were fixed and very expensive. Only 41-67% of beneficiaries felt the vouchers had enabled them to buy all the types and quantities of crops that were available.

Beneficiaries judged the quality of the seed to be very good, and the majority expressed satisfaction with the range and varieties of crops available. Fairs improved the knowledge of local seed systems for both CRS, its partners and beneficiaries. Overall, 94% of beneficiaries recommended further seed assistance through seed fairs. The seed sellers were also satisfied.

More like this

FEX: Support for primary production (Special Supplement 3)

7.1 Introduction This section focuses on supporting agricultural production, in particular farming and livestock production, as livelihood strategies. Production support can...

FEX: CRS seed vouchers & fairs – an innovative approach to help farm communities recover from disaster

Summary of internal evaluation Exchange of seed vouchers for seed in Kiritiri, Mbeere district CRS have recently been involved in two innovative seeds projects in northern...

FEX: Seed security in southern Sudan

Summary of published paper1 sorghum ready for harvest Seeds-and-tools programmes have been widely implemented throughout southern Sudan as a means of increasing the...

FEX: Biofortification: Helping meet nutrition needs worldwide

News By Dr Erick Boy, Nutrition Head, HarvestPlus Dr Erick Boy is a public health practitioner and has a doctoral degree in nutrition from University of California, Davis. He...

FEX: Improving food security and addressing nutrition of vulnerable farming communities affected by conflict and natural disaster in mid-western Nepal

By Guido Agostinucci Guido Agostinucci is an agronomist who collaborated with the Faculty of Agriculture of the University of Viterbo and worked as consultant with FAO since...

FEX: Access to markets and services (Special Supplement 3)

6.1 Introduction In emergencies, access to markets may be lost for a number of reasons. Since most people live in a cash economy, restoring and maintaining adequate access to...

FEX: Vouchers and fairs as emergency response in DRC

Summary of evaluation1 Masisi Centre fair In late 2008, escalated fighting among rebels and the Congolese Armed Forces (FARCD) provoked renewed and widespread displacement in...

FEX: The nutrition-sensitive potential of agricultural programmes in the context of school feeding: lessons from Haiti

By Nathan Mallonee, Jason Streubel, Manassee Mersilus and Grace Heymsfield Lisez cet article en français ici Nathan Mallonee is the Director of Program Effectiveness...

FEX: Emergency Food Security and Livelihoods Project in Amhara and Oromia regions

By Shekar Anand, Oxfam Shekar is Programme Director for Oxfam GB in Ethiopia. Past experience includes working with OXFAM, CARE, CIDA, and Government in Aceh, India, Zimbabawe...

FEX: Food vouchers in Zimbabwe (Special Supplement 3)

By Ann Witteveen and Lewis Lawrence Musa, Oxfam Children returning from miller with maize bought at the Grain Marketing Board. The food voucher programme was designed to...

FEX: A Market Support Programme to Address an Urban Food Crisis in Zimbabwe

By: Kristy Allen Kristy Allen-Shirley is the Communications Coordinator for the Consortium for Southern Africa Food Security Emergency (C-SAFE), based in Johannesburg, South...

FEX: Assessing seed systems in relief operations

Summary1 of published paper Bags of wheat seed are returned to Concern by seed beneficiaries, Caliomamo, Angola Existing guidelines on emergency seed provisioning contain...

FEX: Political economy of adaptation through crop diversification in Malawi

Summary of article1 A government agricultural extension officer showing a farmer how to care for a cassava plant (FAO supported project) The seriousness of the problem of...

FEX: AJFAND special issue on biofortification

Summary of research1 Over the last decade HarvestPlus CGIAR2 national partners have developed over 150 varieties of 11 micronutrient-rich staples, including rice, wheat,...

FEX: Grassroots seed multiplication in Ethiopia

By George Jacob George Jacob is communications officer with the Irish agency, Self Help Development International. The author would like to thank Dr. Awol Mela, Africa...

FEX: References for Special Supplement 3

Beatrice, a beneficiary of the CRS seed voucher scheme in Burundi 1. Abdulai A., Barret, C., Hoddinott, J. (2004, June). Does food aid really have disincentive effects? new...

FEX: Resilient farming in Satkhira, Bangladesh

By Emmanuelle Maisonnave and Julie Mayans View this article as a pdf Lisez cet article en français ici Emmanuelle Maisonnave is the Institutional Knowledge Building...

FEX: Food Preparation an Obstacle to Education

This article is written by Betty Kidan Muni who is a field officer working for SCF with women's groups in south Sudan*. Background Betty Kidan (author of the article)...

FEX: Wild Foods — Blessing or Burden?

Caroline Gullick recently completed an MSc project looking at different aspects of wild foods. The field research was conducted amongst the Dinka (Monjeng) Tribe of Northern...

FEX: Operational factors in the integration of nutrition into agriculture and livelihoods programmes in Zimbabwe

By Anne-Marie Mayer, Rose Ndolo and Jane Keylock View this article as a pdf Lisez cet article en français ici Anne-Marie Mayer works as a consultant for programmes at...

Close

Reference this page

Susanne Jaspars (). Seed vouchers and fairs in Zimbabwe - CRS (Special Supplement 3). Supplement 3: From food crisis to fair trade, March 2006. p51. www.ennonline.net/fex/103/7-5-1

(ENN_3179)

Close

Download to a citation manager

The below files can be imported into your preferred reference management tool, most tools will allow you to manually import the RIS file. Endnote may required a specific filter file to be used.