Balaka Community Sensitization Balaka Community of ... · Quick Facts • WRS Community...
Transcript of Balaka Community Sensitization Balaka Community of ... · Quick Facts • WRS Community...
Quick Facts
• WRS Community
Sensitization 22nd
and 23rd
March 2012
• 50 participants (27 Female
& 23 Male)
• Ulongwe (8 Female & 37
Male)
• Livirivi (27 Females & 116
Males)
Balaka 500mt Warehouse on Nasfam site under
construction due to complete mid-April.
Balaka Community Sensitization
Balaka Community of Smallholder farmers are sensitized on how they can take part in
warehouse receipting system
ACE is running a warehouse receipt project funded by Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) in
partnership with European Union (EU). The project includes building and running of 3 rural
warehouses for third party storage, and access to finance. Balaka Farmers association spans into
three districts of Machinga, Mangochi and Balaka on a radius of 128km with 3545 registered
members split into 9 Grain aggregation centers (GAC). The farmers in the association are
diversifying from their traditional tobacco output to growing Paprika, groundnuts, Pulses and
sorghum.
ACE Organized a two day community sensitization workshops in Balaka
Central for the district council and District Executive committee,
another day was organized for sensitization in Ulongwe community
south of Balaka as well as Livirivi Community in central Balaka. Balaka
is largely a deficit area in Malawi for food crops but has substantial
harvest for cash crops of cotton, paprika, and tobacco. ACE is testing
the idea of Warehouse receipts and its effects in a rural community of
largely food deficit area by building this 500mt registered warehouse
right in the middle of Balaka. This warehouse is ideally positioned to
feed Balaka during acute lean season (low supply, high demand) of
December to March at usually higher price to the benefit of a
depositor. It will also help farmer entrepreneurs who are likely to use
proceeds from their abundant cash crop like cotton to purchase food
items such as Maize, Ground Nuts and pulses from surrounding districts of Mangochi, and Machinga to sale during the lean period.
The District Executive Committee (DEC) Workshop
The district council meeting attracted more than 50 executives of Organizations in Balaka that deal with different development
issues. The list included District executives of world renowned non-governmental organizations such as World Vision, Concern
Universal, Feed the Children, Catholic relief services, Wala among others who are promoting food security, education, and nutrition
through farming. Their idea integrates well with WRS so that families farming cash crops have now a storage center which allows
them to purchase food items for house hold use and income during surplus period of May to July and sale or use during lean season
of December to March without deteorating quality or volume.
DEC workshop in pictures
District Executive council members share
ideas on how they can collaborate with
ACE in enhancing the WRS concept with
their respective project beneficiaries.
Council Members listen
attentively on how the
registered 500mt warehouse
will benefit a smallholder
farmer through WRS project.
Ulongwe and Livirivi Communities sensitized
A total of 153 Men and 35 Women attended the two community sensitization meetings which included WRS presentation by ACE
officials, Speech by community elder, the Balaka smallholder association chairlady and Drama sketches to highlight the benefit of
WRS to smallholder farmers. The sensitization was based on three pillars, (1) Farmers are usually forced to sale their produce at low
prices as soon as they harvest (high supply with relatively low demand) due to lack of storage as well as their immediate cash needs
which prevents them to keep commodity till the price is right for them. (2) Commercial banks are not willing to lend to the
smallholder farmers despite 80% of agricultural production is done by smallholder farmers due to the risks associated in that lending
portfolio. (3) Contractual performance between smallholder farmers and organizations was very poor leading to numerous defaults
on the exchange usually because the change in price could have been higher than previously agreed on the contract, sometimes the
quality and volume was never as specified in their respective agreements leading to more defaults and disputes.
A warehouse receipt in such an environment
perhaps is the answer to solve the above problems.
Farmers are able to use their commodity on
receipts as collateral to obtain a loan from
participating banks during the high supply period in
order to offset their immediate cash needs. Banks
are willing to lend against this collateral up to 70%
of the commodity value on commission that the
commodity is in a third party insured warehouse
which will in this case not release collateral unless the loan has been settled. Thirdly contractual performance is improved as a
signature to sell the commodity by the depositor will mean an immediate invoice to the buyer and as soon as payment is made the
buyer is guaranteed performance as the commodity is in third party hands.
Community sensitizations in Pictures
A 15min sketch Drama is performed at Ulongwe to emphasise the
benefit of warehouse receipts in rural communities.
Watch the Video at: http://youtu.be/jc8SF001FdE
Women at Livirivi community listen on
as ACE officials present the upcoming
warehouse receipting system using a
500mt registered warehouse in central
Balaka.
Women represent a 45% of Livirivi
Community farmer group growing 90%
of grain (Maize, Groundnuts, and
Pulses) in this area. Most of the men in
this area grow cash crops like cotton
and tobacco.
WRS will enable such women access
finance using their produce as
collateral during the low price period to
fulfil their house hold needs including
feeding their children, sending the
children to school, medical care etc.
1. Ulongwe community elders and
association representatives listen
to warehouse receipt concept from
an ACE Official.
2. Some of the 116 Men in
attendance at Livirivi aggregation
centre.
3. Ulongwe farmer group members
watching a drama highlighting the
benefits of a warehouse receipting
system in this groundnuts rich
area.
4. An ACE Official responds to some
of the farmer concerns in
implementation of WRS.
Outcome
ACE has already identified three collaborating partners in Balaka to promote warehouse receipts to various stakeholders in the area.
Wellness and Agriculture for Life Advancement (WALA) a non-Governmental organization working with farmer groups in Balaka to
improve yields in respective crops Invited Farmer representatives to meet ACE warehouse managers to learn more about warehouse
receipts and how they can market their intended increased yields.
The District Commissioner has vowed to extend this project and its objectives to other arms within his authority to ensure more
people benefit from warehouse receipts.
Looking Forward
More community sensitization in the month of April through to May 2012
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