unitex@rubbs.fidonet.org (unitex) (09/24/89)
Small Farms, But Hardly Beautiful
Posting Date: 09/24/89 Source: UNITEX Network, Hoboken, NJ, USA
Host: (201) 795-0733 ISSN: 1043-7932
(Financial Times, September 21, 1039 words, by Mike Hall)
Mike Hall in Blantyre looks at Malawi's agricultural difficulties
One is struck by the blue of the mountains, the red-brown of
fertile land, but above all the bright green of huge tobacco
fields, carpets of tea and rows of young coffee bushes. This
small southern African country's estates offer a vision of
wealth. Yet they contrast sharply with the jigsaw puzzle of tiny
maize fields tilled by Malawi's peasantry. Almost 2 m families,
they make up 85 per cent of the population and are the cause for
mounting concern. Some may ask: "Why worry?" Malawi exported
maize in the mid-80s - earning a reputation as a success story
on a continent plagued by famine. This year, despite widespread
floods, Malawi has declared a maize surplus. It is an
achievement. But the problem is that at least 60 per cent of
peasant farmers will not have harvested enough maize to feed
their families for the whole year, let alone earn enough cash
for their needs. The surplus has been produced by
resource-endowed farmers, about one fifth of the total.
Overall, the peasant sector has stagnated. Output grew only 2.6
per cent last year, still well below the population growth of
about 3.5 per cent a year. Already 27 per cent of children die
before the age of five - the sixth highest in the world, says
UNICEF, the United Nations's Childrens' Fund. Over half the
survivors are badly malnourished. Past efforts to boost output
have largely failed. A recent review of one 10-year project,
where substantial foreign aid had been focused, concluded: "...
agricultural production declined, living standards deteriorated,
and the family income decreased." So what are the constraints on
productivity and how can they be addressed? The answers are
crucial. Economists say they provide the key to boosting
economic growth overall. Land is the biggest problem. About 55
per cent of rural families cultivate only one hectare or less.
At present levels of technology, it is simply impossible for
them to grow enough. Declining soil fertility is a considerable
headache. Land pressures mean that farmers cannot leave their
plots fallow, so continuous cultivation has drained away
nutrients. As demand for fuel rises, trees are removed and
top-soil is washed away. Most small farmers have not adopted
"green revolution" technology. They reject available varieties
of high-yielding maize, because it is difficult to store and
there are heavy losses when it is pounded into flour. The area
under hybrid maize last season increased by 46 per cent, but it
still makes up only 7.5 per cent of the total area planted to
maize, compared with 60 per cent in Kenya. Although fertiliser
sales are steadily increasing, mainly because it is being sold
in smaller bags, most still cannot afford it. Efforts to extend
credit have met with limited success.
Credit is disbursed through farmers' clubs of up to about 50
villagers. Although the number of such clubs doubled last year
and women are becoming increasingly active in their own clubs,
they still cover only 22 per cent of small farmers. Only the
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