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Michael Tome–Business Reporter

AGRICULTURE Marketing Authority (AMA) has embarked on a rebranding exercise that aims to create linkages that will enhance agriculture productivity and market access across the region and beyond.

This rebranding exercise intends to transform this arm of agriculture into a robust, innovative and effective partner for development in the agricultural sector.  

The initiative’s immediate goals include mobilisation of value chain financing and promotion of productivity in all facets of agriculture as well as capacitation of farmers and other agricultural players through targeted training programmes.

In this new drive the agricultural produce marketing body also intends to promote collaborations across various value chain players to improve agriculture production and profitability and as well as adopt ICTs as a way to facilitate agricultural growth. 

AMA board chairman Mr Allan Majuru, indicated that the exercise proposes to build a positive image for the organisation that had been on the decline in recent years. In that regard the organisation’s goal is to come up with policies that will promote effective marketing of the country’s farming products.

“Over the years, our stakeholders perception about our operations and performance has been largely negative. This is partly attributed to a lack of understanding and appreciation of the AMA mandate, role and responsibility.

“More than ever, AMA is now prioritising attainment of goals stated in the mandate. This will be fulfilled by being an honest arbiter, facilitator, enabler, and a force multiplier to increase production, productivity, and profitability of the agricultural sector,” said Mr Majuru.

The transformed AMA is set to efficiently play its role in the implementation of programmes that underpin the current agriculture recovery process as guided by the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy and National Development Strategy 1 (NDS).

In the new drive AMA intends to enforce strict compliance to set rules and regulations as well as monitoring agriculture players adherence to the rules and regulations that govern the agricultural sector in Zimbabwe. 

Reformation process of this agricultural body kicked off last year with the appointment of a new board of directors led by Mr Majuru while Mr Clever Isaya, was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer, in July 2020. 

Immediately the board started by restructuring the authority to address the challenges raised by farmers and other key stakeholders. 

AMA is a statutory body under the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Resettlement and its mandate is to regulate, supervise, develop, and administer the marketing of agricultural products. 

It was established in terms of the Agricultural Marketing Authority Act (Chapter 18:24). 

The act was enacted in 2004 after the repeal of the Agricultural Products Marketing Act (18:22) and the authority became operational in 2010.