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Charles Dhewa Review Correspondent —
While climate change-induced erratic rainfall patterns are making the production of most famous crops difficult, small grains such as sorghum, pearl millet and finger millet are quietly becoming part of mainstream food systems in Zimbabwe.

Almost every town has dozens of restaurants serving small grains sadza and diverse forms of relish. Small grains are now also part of urban agriculture as shown by small plots in areas surrounding Harare and other cities.

Some large scale farmers have also started producing small grains through irrigation. Production is likely to increase if irrigation schemes are supported to make small grains part of their crop cycles.

Another critical trend driving the growth of small grains production and consumption is the increasing commercialisation of indigenous poultry. There is some silent consensus that indigenous chickens have to be fed on small grains, not commercial feed if the meat is to maintain its indigenousness.

What are some of joys and pains of small grains along the value chain?
In an effort to answer the above question, eMKambo and the Zimbabwe Economic Policy Analysis and Research Unit (ZEPARU) recently conducted a national survey to assess the scope for small grains production and processing within the entire value chain.

The survey gathered data and analysed the small grains value chain, identifying opportunities and challenges that need to be considered for successful small grains development. Focusing on sorghum, pearl millet and finger millet, 141 farmers participated in the study in Buhera (Manicaland), Mangwe (Matabeleland South), Hwange (Matabeleland North), Mberengwa (Midlands), Mudzi (Mashonaland East), Rushinga (Mashonalnd Central), Sanyati (Mashonaland West) and Zaka (Masvingo).

Farmers who participated in the study are currently producing small grains. About 52,5 percent of these respondents were male, which shows that the distribution of respondents was almost gender balanced.

While all the farmers in the study grow more than one crop, sorghum had the highest number of participants, followed by maize, pearl millet and finger millet.

The farmers chosen were also of different production scales, given that some were small scale (up to one hectare of land), medium scale (from more than one hectare up to two hectares) and relatively larger scale farmers (more than two hectares). For example, about 65 percent of the sorghum farmers interviewed grow sorghum on a small scale level, while only about 6 percent grow on a larger scale.

For pearl millet, the proportion growing on a small scale is larger at about 77 percent, with only about 6 percent growing on a larger scale. Finger millet is grown almost entirely on a small scale among the interviewed farmers, constituting about 97 percent of the farmers. None of the farmers interviewed grow finger millet on a large scale.

Small grains and livelihoods
The promotion of small grains in Zimbabwe is mostly being pushed as a livelihood issue, given climate change realities and frequent drought-induced hunger and poverty. About 16 percent of the households that produce small grains are vulnerable, being either headed by widows or divorced mothers. This makes interventions aimed at ensuring food self-sustenance important.

About 55 percent of the farmers have either never been to school or have been to primary level as the highest qualification. This also makes it highly likely that they have limited income earning opportunity except through the farming activities. Thus, affording such farmers, opportunities to participate in the small grains value chain would go a long way in enhancing their income.

Number of people dependent on agriculture
Generally, farmers who grow small grains look after a number of dependants, which makes it critical that production be enhanced for food sustenance. On average, the farmers need to feed about six people each, implying that those who participated in the study collectively feed more than 896 people.

Main source of power
The farmers mostly rely on animal/draught power with little mechanisation. About 85 percent of the farmers interviewed rely on this source of power, with only about 7 percent using mechanised methods. The remainder use manual labour without any help from animal power. This is critical if the value chain is to be developed further. Investors in the upper stream of the value chain would need to invest in mechanised method to ensure that there would be more output.

Farming practices and techniques
Small grains production is grown with little use of fertiliser among the farmers interviewed. Only 33 percent of the farmers apply fertiliser to small grains. This also explains the low yields. Despite the low yields, about half (49,6 percent) of the farmers use some form of hired labour in the small grains production process. However, discussions with the farmers reveal that the hiring of labour is mostly in the form of a community participation concept known as “nhimbe”.

Payment for participation is not in cash under this scenario but in the form of traditional beer brewed for the purpose or other methods of motivating the communities to participate. It is mostly family labour that is used to grow and process small grains, as about 94 percent of the farmers interviewed rely on their family members for labour.

Farmers also try to enhance production through crop rotation, where they make some efforts to ensure that the same field put under small grains is not repeated in the next planting period.

Only 10 percent of the respondents indicated that they have dedicated field on which small grains are grown, which is not rotated with other crops. Such practices reduce yields as the crops become vulnerable to pest attacks. Less than half of the respondents (46 percent) have different varieties of small grains.

Most of the farmers rarely change varieties but continue with the same varieties due to reliance on recycled seeds from previous harvests. This is also not a good farming practice as it makes the crop vulnerable to pests. There is also over reliance on rain fed farming methods for small grains, as about all the farmers (99 percent) do not use irrigation for planting small grains.

Charles Dhewa is a proactive knowledge management specialist and chief executive officer of Knowledge Transfer Africa (Pvt) (www.knowledgetransafrica.com) whose flagship eMKambo (www.emkambo.co.zw) has a presence in more than 20 agricultural markets in Zimbabwe. He can be contacted on: [email protected] ; Mobile: +263 774 430 309 / 772 137 717/ 712 737 430.