EDITORIAL: A post-mortem into agric activity needed to revitalise sector

Members of the Senatorial Standing Committee on Economic Development and Finance have said that despite proper policies in place, lack of an efficient organisational mechanism keeps many subsistent farmers in isolated agricultural practices that yield so little. The senators said, in all districts toured, they noticed resistance to organised farming, a claim that is justified by the fact that farmers continue to decry poor produce, lack of market, continuous posting of losses, among others challenges. The senators also said they identified serious challenges such as lack of seeds, seeds that are safe and specific for designated areas, limited fertiliser supply and ignorance of effective use of the chemicals in farming. The impact of these drawbacks is not only telling but embarrassing, too. Not long ago, the Kinazi Cassava Plant in Muhanga District, Southern Province, was opened to bated optimism. For years, cassava farmers had complained of lack of market that saw them lose much of their crops to weathering and give-away prices. But the highly billed Kinazi Cassava Plant, just like the Irish potato processing plant in Nyabihu District, has never been able to operate to full capacity, thus incurring losses. The plants are compelled to import raw materials from neighbouring countries. A similar ‘curse’ dogs the Rwf10bn Soy Seed Plant in Kayonza District. This trend is cancerous and must be checked because we are talking about a sector that accounts for a third of national GDP and constitutes the main economic activity for the rural households and remains the main source of income for at least 80 per cent of the country’s total population. The sector also meets 90 per cent of the national food needs and generates more than 50 per cent of the country’s export revenues. This is why an inquest into factors for these sloppy undertakings is crucial and solutions must be devised by relevant authorities. Like the senators said, a paradigm shift and more interventions from government institutions, such as Rwanda Agricultural Board (RAB), have to be effected. The Government’s target to increase productivity of agriculture with a projected annual sector growth of 8.5 per cent, up from 5.8 per cent, by 2018 will be a pipe dream if such drawbacks persist. There is need to transform agriculture into a modern, professionally operated, and market-oriented economic undertaking.

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EDITORIAL: A post-mortem into agric activity needed to revitalise sector