Ali Said Correspondent
Youths face many structural, financial, technological and knowledge barriers to participate in agriculture. In some cases, the youths have challenges accessing land while those that have pieces of land and produce struggle to find viable markets for the produce whether crop or livestock. Addressing these barriers will be a giant step in restoring the lustre in farming and make youths enjoy the attendant benefits that come with farming as a business.

Gainfully employing youths in agriculture is not only a necessary action for economic growth of countries like Zimbabwe with estimated 60 percent of the total population youth, but it is the only and proven path to inclusive growth. Such an action could be the way to reverse the considerable migration of youths from rural areas to urban centres and abroad.

African governments acknowledge the importance of youth participation with the 2014 Malabo Declaration targeting youth engagement in agriculture, the creation of jobs in the agriculture value chains and the support and facilitation of preferential entry and participation for women and youths in gainful and attractive agribusiness opportunities.

A visit in April this year, in the company of officials from Government as well as UK Department for International Development (DFID) to Kwekwe District confirmed to me and those I was travelling with that youth participation in agriculture is indeed the right pathway for achieving broad-based economic growth every Zimbabwean dreams of.

We visited a 28-year-old farmer named Desire Sibanda, a participant in the Livelihoods and Food Security Programme (LFSP), which is supported by UKAid and managed by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and Palladium International in partnership with a consortium of NGOs. We were all awestruck by how his participation in this programme had transformed his life and that of his community.

What greeted our eyes as we entered the homestead was the cleanliness of the yard, a recently constructed fowl run as well as the lush maize, sweet potato and sorghum crop. Casting my eyes to the east of the yard, I saw a woman drawing water from a deep well and there was a storage tank meant for watering the garden.

Interestingly, Desire received neither a handout nor financial subsidy from the programme. What the project provided Desire was hands-on training on production and marketing of crops and livestock and exposing him to best practices in the nearby demonstration plot run by a Lead Farmer who has benefited from the programme.

Desire was very quick to adopt what he had seen in the master demonstration and even improve upon it. Having completed his O-Levels and receiving LFSP training on gross margin budgeting, Desire is now able to apply the gained knowledge in selecting enterprises that offer him the highest return.

Participants under LFSP are taken through diverse training and practical demonstrations on how they can transit from subsistence farming to producing what the market demands. An essential feature of the programme is training farmers on financial literacy, good agronomic and livestock husbandry practices, diversification of production and consumption, and nutritional behaviour changes so they can achieve both food security and commercial objec- tives.

Desire has transformed from subsistence to commercial farming over the last two seasons. After selling the surplus eight tonnes of maize and earning $3 120 during the 2016-17 season, Desire bought a submersible pump, a generator and a storage tank.

He also drilled a 30-metre-deep borehole which is used to water vegetables as well as provide clean and safe water for a number of households within his village. During the 2017-18 season Desire realised a total gross income of $5,279,60 from maize (6ha), sweet potatoes (1ha) and tomatoes (0,2ha).

Desire runs a thriving garden in which he tries out various climate smart technologies on a variety of crops. Some of the crops in his garden at the time of the visit were: sugar beans, tomatoes, pearl millet, cowpeas, sorghum, groundnuts and fodder in the form of leucaena.

In addition, he has ventured into the propagation of fruit trees for sale to the local community. Desire also keeps goats, chicken and guinea fowls in improved houses, a concept he acquired from LFSP training. He diversified his farming business in order to mitigate possible climatic risks common to the area. He plans to venture into cattle pen fattening as well as installing a drip irrigation systems for his garden. The young farmer, who exuded confidence as he explained all about his farming business, explained how he was using profits from the venture to improve life.

Desire said he recently married and used proceeds from his farming business to finance the wedding. Chickens which were consumed on the wedding were all raised by him. He says they slaughter a bird at least once a week and jokingly adds: “The number of chickens could have been higher, but I killed a bird every week after marrying as I wanted to impress my wife and also ensure that she had a good diet as she was expecting.”

Desire was very unequivocal about his future, showing that he wanted to grow as a farmer.
“I know there are people who say there are no jobs, I have also tried getting formal employment as I possess a class two driver’s licence. I have realised that agriculture is the key to a better life. I will continue expanding my business and start my own shop where I will sell some of the farm produce. I will also create employment as I will need other people to assist me with the business,” said Desire as he proudly showed around his fields with a lush sweet potato crop.

Young farmers emulating from Desire
Other young farmers from within his village have also understudied him through a study circle with equally impressive results. One such farmer is Abigail Nyoni, who is also a mother. Abigail said she was able to look after her children because of the information she got from the study circle.

“I decided to join the study circle after I realised that I would benefit from the information shared through the group. I have used this information to make decision on what to plant and how to market. This guided me last year when I grew tomatoes. The proceeds from the sale of tomatoes has seen me sending children to school and buy other things they need,” said Abigail.
She added that her wish was to grow the business and also buy livestock as a cushion should anything bad happen to her tomato farming.

Several other young farmers have adopted similar farming practices at various scales. Desire and the fellow young farmers use the study circle approach to discuss their farming businesses. The study circle is another approach that was introduced under LFSP, said Desire.

“I have heard people say that farming is for poor people. I agree but add the statement that it is for poor people so that they get rich. For example in my case, I can safely say that I am rich as I can afford to feed myself and my wife. I also get a balanced diet as I have most of what I need. We have also been taught of the need to eat healthy under LFSP and we are doing just that.”

It is not hard to imagine the contribution to the GDP and livelihoods of the population if the existing sizeable unemployed youth in Zimbabwe could be productively engaged in agriculture. The models being pursued by LFSP offer an alternative approach to addressing the high youth unemployment and curb the alarming influx of youth to urban centres in country and abroad.

Ali Said works for the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) as adviser for the Livelihoods and Food Security Programme (LFSP)