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Obert Chifamba-Agri-Insight

IT seems country clubs have quietly gone “absent without official leave” from their critical role of serving as platforms for farmers to share and exchange vital information on agriculture.

This has prompted Government to push for their rehabilitation and revival so that they play a part in the current push to commercialise farming. 

And, justifiably, the Government has since announced intentions to revive the country club culture, which used to be popular with commercial farmers prior to the roll out of the land reform that saw it dying a slow but unintended death. 

Today, only a few, if any, have remained operational, which has left a yawning gap for platforms on which farmers can exchange or share critical information while they may be playing golf, braaing or even having drinks.

From as far back as the 1900s up to the turn of the millennium, country clubs used to provide that space, which farmers direly needed to engage in fruitful discussions in a relaxed atmosphere and share information on various farming issues ranging from general production of both crops and livestock to markets. 

This current push by the Government aptly sums up the progressive mood that the country has slid into hence the need to do everything possible to plug up all information gaps that can slow the agriculture sector’s forward march, as it moves to play its part towards the attainment of Vision 2030. 

The sector has since fired warning shots heralding its intentions to recover its Bread basket of Africa status that it had lost in recent times, thanks to a plethora of challenges ranging from man-made to natural. 

Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development permanent secretary Dr John Basera revealed the Government’s plans during a seminar held at Banket Sports Club recently when he conceded that country clubs were a key component in the country’s development matrix, as they enhance sharing of information. 

It is an undeniable fact that farming is a knowledge-intensive industry in which farmers need to access and process financial, climatic, technical and regulatory information to manage their farms effectively. 

In most cases, farmers have accessed information from both public and private institutions but there have always been some inadequacies emanating from the failure to secure a consistent flow of accurate, timely and easily accessible information.

The Government’s decision to rehabilitate country clubs is in fact, an acknowledgement of its obligation to provide farmers with information to increase efficiency and improve the performance of the economy. 

The private sector also has a role to play in providing information to farmers to ensure there are raw materials that keep their businesses functional while there is also need for effective policies to identify where investment in public information is most effective. 

Other than being platforms for information dissemination, country clubs are grass root level informal forums that also enable important institutions like banks to interact with farmers on a less formal platform but discussing critical matters to do with productivity.

Country clubs can easily co-ordinate with banks to ensure credit flow among members and forge better bank borrower relationships. Even non-members are in most cases free to attend such informal meetings and walk away richer with knowledge afterwards. 

Meetings at country clubs make it possible for farmers to interface with subject matter specialists in the various fields of agriculture and allied activities, for instance, extension personnel and other related agencies for technical know-how upgradation.

For guest lectures, even experienced farmers who are non-members from the village or neighbouring farms can be invited to make the sessions livelier. 

It is also during such meetings that country clubs enable liaison between farmers and corporate input suppliers for the purchase of bulk inputs on behalf of members. 

Farmers can also organise or facilitate joint activities like value addition, processing, collective farm produce marketing and many other important functions.

During good times, farmers can also organise the occasional socio-economic developmental activities like community works, education, health, environment and natural resource management. 

Essentially, country clubs play an important role in supporting the country’s agro-based economy by providing the needed social capital that is not readily accessible in other settings. Their revival will undoubtedly provide farmers with platforms to meet and share knowledge and experiences from their different farming disciplines. 

It is unfortunate to note that most of the current crop of farmers are still trying to find their feet after their successful acquisition of land coincided with a time the economy was not performing well owing to numerous challenges that made it difficult for agricultural production to get off to a vibrant and rewarding start. 

As a result of this slow start, the farmers do not have the social capital needed in the running of country clubs in the same manner the old commercial farmers did. 

Their predecessors would network extensively and behave like a real community, which does not seem to be happening with the current group. 

It is therefore crucial for our farmers to leave individualism and start working together as a sector or community bounded by similar interests using the country clubs as centres of excellence where they get knowledge, interact and share ideas. 

It is refreshing to note that farmers situated around Banket in Mashonaland West province have already forged a partnership with the private sector to mobilise resources for the revival of the abandoned Banket Sports Club where they now meet as professionals and business people to discuss pertinent issues and share information on various agricultural matters. 

Country clubs are in essence, part of the ecosystem of the farming communities where farmers can interact on various industrial trends while providing a centralised point where the farmers will interact with extension service workers. 

Such gatherings have a knowledge mobilisation role that is critical in addressing the knowledge gap in the industry, Dr Basera observed recently when he attended a meeting at Banket Sports Club. 

Dr Basera’s ministry is currently seized with concept at village head level, with the village head’s farm being used as a site for a farmer field school that will play a role that almost replicates that of the country club except that this one will take of that group of farmers that cannot be members to the country clubs for various reasons. 

Farmer field schools will be established in all of the country’s 35 000 villages to easy extension service provision, as the Government moves to capacitate farmers with the much-needed technical know-how for increased productivity. 

This development will naturally feed into the slogan of leaving no one or place behind because if a farmer cannot benefit from the country club, then he or she has to benefit from the farmer field schools.