16 April 2010 

 

EXECUTIVE NEWS

 

In just over one month’s time, on 20^th May 2010, we are hosting the Robin Banks evening at the Celebration Centre in Harare. Robin has been hailed as one of the greatest motivational speakers in the world and we would like to encourage everyone to make an effort to attend as his speech is very light hearted and down to earth and just what we need to lift our spirits a little bit in the current unsettling environment in which we live.

 

The tickets for the show are available at the Union as well as from all our Councillors who have each been given a book of tickets to sell. It should be a fun evening for all and the tickets only cost US$20 each with a small portion going to the Union. There are tickets for 2 500 people to attend and 100 of those people will be in a draw for special prizes.

 

We hope to see you all there and please do your bit to advertise the event to all your friends, whether they are farmers or not.

 

Last weekend the executive had numerous telephone calls to deal with, mainly from outside the country from anxious farmers, friends and members of the public following a text message from South Africa, which was doing the rounds. We had to field calls from all over the world to respond to rumours that all the remaining white Zimbabwean farmers were given 24 hours to vacate their properties, and requested that they be prayed for.

 

We have no idea of the origin of the message which is obviously untrue. We would like to thank all those who first checked with us before forwarding this message to others and perpetuating the rumour.

 

A further ‘rumour’ this week was the press report that the Indigenisation Regulations, which requested all companies to register their business plans with the Minister on the IDG1 form by 15 April 2010, had been put on hold by the Prime Minister. Although this had been anticipated the report was soon countered by the President in a speech at the tobacco sales floor. We now await clarity on this but at this stage our original advice still stands until such time as any Statutory Instruments about any changes to the regulations are published in the Government Gazette.

 

This week most NetOne customers received both text messages and emails stating the following:

 

“To our valued clients, please be advised that with effect from 27 April 2010 the NetOne network destination code will change from 011 to 0712.”

 

Unless there is any late change all our 011 lines will be changed to the above after the said date.

 

On Tuesday this week there was a very successful Open Farmers’ Meeting held following the CFU Council meeting in the morning. There were over 100 people who attended the meeting, which included a number of CFU past presidents – one of whom was visiting from Australia.

 

At the meeting much of our strategy was discussed so unfortunately those people in Harare who were unable to attend missed out on this. There has been a request for the circulation of the meeting’s minutes to those who are unable to attend but we are unable to do this for security reasons and instead use this bulletin to cover most of the points covered in the meeting, albeit without giving away strategy.

 

Most of what was discussed at the Open Farmers’ Meeting was previously discussed at Council which will be covered below.

 

The next Open Farmers’ Meeting will be held at the Union on 11 May 2010.

 

Marc Carrie-Wilson’s report on ZESA is covered below:

 

Report on ZESA – Enquiry by the Competition and Tariffs Commission

 

From the Desk of Marc Carrie-Wilson

 

The operations Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) are the subject of enquiry by the Competition and Tariffs Commission. Some weeks ago the Commission published a call for submissions of evidence of abuse of monopoly cantered on the charging of exorbitant tariffs based on unreasonable estimates of power consumption. It appears there were quite a few submissions leading the Commission to arrange and hold 2 public hearings, one in Harare at the Andy Miller Hall in the Show Grounds and one in Bulawayo. The CFU had submitted written evidence to the Commission and was invited along with several other organizations including the Zimbabwe Farmers’ Union (ZFU) to present its evidence publically.

 

Generally the complaints cantered on the following points:

·         ZESA as the key economic enabler was contributing to stagnated economic growth through erratic supply of Electricity and apparently exorbitant tariffs given the present economic circumstances of the country.

·         The Agricultural sector needs stable blocks of power during daylight hours in order to plan for irrigation in line with a winter cropping programme.

·         Agricultural and the Commercial Sectors need to pay tariffs which do not jeopardize business viability.

·         ZESA’s management structures were accused of being too bloated. It must run in a much more efficient way.

·         Outrageous estimates and erroneously calculated bills should not result in disconnection which was happening in practice.

·         Users of domestic power demanded pre paid power facilities. Simply put consumers want to pay for what is consumed at a reasonable tariff; no more and no less.

·         The question as to why a fixed charge should be levied was raised in light of the erratic power supply. Surely the fixed charge should be                                                                                                                                                                                                      

·         There is no accountability as to how the rural electrification levy is being spent.

·         The costs associated with vandalised Power Supply facilities are being borne by residents in the areas concerned which was unacceptable.

·         ZESA should engage the public and representative organizations and clarify its position with regard to billing etc.

ZESA had opportunity to respond. A full contingent was in attendance including all the Branch Mangers of the various ZESA offices around the country.  The General Manager (GM) of the Zimbabwe Electricity Distribution and Transmission Company (ZEDTC) gave an involved presentation outlining the many aspects relating to Power supply, distribution transmission and billing and the associated challenges his organization faced. He then took questions and addressed some of the issues that had been raised. Points of interest raised by the GM were as follows:

 

·         ZESA had unbundled itself into a holding company and 4 other subsidiary companies. The company responsible for procuring, distributing and transmitting electricity as well as for maintenance the repair of faults and meter reading and billing is called ZEDTC.

·         There is a deficit in the amount of power being procured to meet the total demand, hence the need for load shedding.

·         In the Harare Province there had been a collapse of the billing computer system in 2009 which had resulted in many errors.

·         Disconnection was the last resort and there would be no disconnection before finalization of a disputed bill.

·         Estimates were necessary because ZEDTC does not have the capacity to read every meter on a monthly basis.

·         If consumers pay based on their own meter readings it would accepted. (Note that when reading your meter be aware that one revolution does not reflect one kilowatt hour each meter may be different but the number of revolutions which represent a kilowatt hour will be displayed on the meter in question).

·         Prior to February 2009 (i.e. in the Zim dollar era) would not be charged for in US dollars.

·         The Ministry of Energy gave directives of 30 dollars for high density and 40 dollars for low density which were applicable for the first months of dollarization. At present the charge is 7.4 cents per kilowatt hour which should be added to the fixed charge and the rural electrification levy.

·         The charge is reasonable compared to many of Zimbabwe’s neighbours. (For example South African charges are 20 cents per kilowatt hour).

·         A household with very high consumption should not be more than 136 dollars per month. The average bill in the low density areas for moderate consumption should not exceed 50 – 60 dollars per month.

·         Farmers can make arrangements with ZEDTC to calculate their bills if they feel the bills are excessive. He admitted that there have been some errors in calculating bills in some areas. Be aware of the maximum demand tariff where a large load is placed on the grid at one time the usage will be pushed into maximum demand. Farmers’ were advised to stager the start up of their motors.

It was pointed out to the GM that his statements did not reflect what was happening in practice. I therefore requested a written set of guidelines detailing what had been said. This could then be disseminate to our members. We will advise as soon as this document is available and as soon as more information is available.

 

With regard to the Constitution a 2-day workshop was held to educate the raporteurs. Initially one of the parties had tried to rig the whole process but once this was exposed each party was requested to submit a list of names of a specific number of people from whom the final list would be selected by the committee. The police have already submitted their required budget of US$3 million to pay for their 1000 policemen who will accompany the rapateurs on their trips around the country.

 

With regard to other attempts to interfere with the process the setting up of ‘base camps’ has been defended by some Ministers who insist they are carrying out ‘genuine programs to educate the people’. Other complaints stem from the attempt by the same party to only allow headmen to address the rapateurs at the meetings. All these matters need to be addressed before the consultative process begins in about 3-weeks time.

 

We will publish our final position and proposals once further consultations have taken place.

 

Around the country the late rains have been welcomed although there will still be a shortage of water in most dams around the country. Of concern though is that ZINWA is being accused of controlling the availability of either public or private water and has increased the cost of water from US$0.50c per megalitre to US$17 per megalitre, which is absolutely not viable. It has been suggested that the matter be brought in front of a Commission of Enquiry similar to what happened to ZESA with regard their monopoly.

 

Zimbabwe will definitely have to import large amounts of maize and soyas this year and in fact the GMB has already started. South Africa has had an exceptional season and therefore the maize price is down to US$125/tonne. The Government price for our maize this season is US$325 so there are already stockpiles of imported maize building up at the GMB depots.

 

Barley contracts are already being signed and Northern Tobacco is sponsoring 2000ha of wheat to be grown.

 

The large grain borer is abundant in the fields at the moment so producers are advised to reap the crops as soon as possible and get the harvest under cover where it can be fumigated.

 

The Pig Industry Board is currently pushing for a 1% levy on pigs in order to recover their losses. This was debated around the table and it was suggested that perhaps we consider assisting them returning to their role of research and then we use their facilities. Other suggestions were debated.

 

The poultry and livestock producers are a bit happier now there is a ban on imports from South Africa following the confirmation of Rift Valley Fever there. Our producers will now be able to offload their accumulated stockpiles on the local markets.

 

However, there is a downside to this ban on imports in that essential fishmeal and vaccines have also been banned. Fortunately the Union has stocks of most vaccines available to its members.

 

Dr Clive Levy is currently updating all our crop handbooks, which should also be available in the electronic form by the end of the year.

 

Although this season was not good for many crops due to the midseason drought, it has produced one of the most sought after tobacco crops for many years. The higher prices have encouraged more small-scale producers to sign up for growing tobacco next year.

 

On the security side it has been suggested that the increase in the number of armed robberies, particularly in the Makoni district, has been caused by the politicians failing to pay their hired youth who were allegedly employed at Christmas to evict farmers from their farms.

 

Of interest, one of the alleged armed robbers from the Midlands has been arrested.

 

There has been another farmer convicted and evicted by the courts but he has already lodged his appeal. In another area in the south of the country a farmer has been locked up overnight in preparation for prosecution, presumably under the Gazetted Land (Consequential Provisions) Act.

 

The total evicted by the courts so far is 22, but all have appealed. Farmers are once again reminded to please keep on submitting information of disruptions and court dates to [email protected] At the moment we have some 164 farmers being prosecuted in the courts but we only have information on about 20 a month if we are lucky. It is imperative that we keep all our records up to date as in the long run it will be you who benefits from these records.

 

The banks appear to becoming very frustrated in their attempts to do business with the farming community, especially with regard to farmers operating on contested land. They are also therefore pushing for a moratorium on both the evictions and prosecutions in order to stabilise the situation for all farmers.

 

With regards to case number SC81/10, which is our application for a moratorium, filed in the Supreme Court the period in which the respondents should file their opposing affidavits will expire today. The same applies to our High Court application on compensation, HC1961/10, as the deadline has also passed. So far we have received no response.

 

Several queries and suggestions were put forward with regard the Valuation Consortium all of which are fully answered in a pamphlet now available from the Union and the Valuation Consortium.

 

There has been some apparent misunderstanding over the difference of values on claims put forward by the Valuation Consortium and a South African company. It was explained that the major difference came about because the South African company is including consequential loss claims, which the Valuation Consortium are not. Our view is that compensation should first be claimed for the land, improvements and the rental/interest as this is easily quantified thus giving quicker payment.

 

The consequential damage claims would be more difficult and therefore take longer through the courts so we want to avoid anything that may obstruct or delay any payments to assist the many farmers who are now elderly and struggling financially.

 

With regards to the farm wages, there has been no change. There appears to be a problem in the negotiations because the GAPWUZ hierarchy are apparently in hiding following threats made to them after the showing of a video on the adverse effects of the Land Reform Programme on farm workers.

 

This matter, and that of the domestics, has been raised with the Salary Advisory Board. Figures being proposed for domestics are at a basic of US$68 plus US$72 allowances. It has been traditional that farm workers’ salaries are 25% higher than domestic’s basic pay as they are employed in the productive sector. This would bring up the proposed wages to USD$85 if accepted. They are also suggesting allowances be the same be the same as domestics.

 

The HPC and Poultry industries are stand alone commodities. At the recent EMCOZ meeting they have requested that the Labour Act be looked at from an employers’ point of view. There is also talk of bringing Civil Servants to fall under this Act as they were previously on their own.

 

Council was asked to come up with a clear position with regard the old ALB.

 

Farmers should note that April 18 and 19 are classified as Agricultural Holidays in terms of the Act.

 

Matters concerning the CFU’s finance took a lot of time in debate as although we have the highest membership for a number of years a large number of them are either not farming or else are pensioners coming in at the subsidised rate. The President said the situation is extremely serious indeed and we need full support and payment from all our previous membership of 4 500 members. He said that we are working extremely hard on all fronts at the moment and that it would be a great pity if we were to lose momentum through lack of funds.

 

In an exercise carried out in one province we discovered that some 120 farmers were still on the ground. Of these 38 were farming full time and 59 were partially farming. Of these only 22% were current CFU members.

 

The President said that the time for ‘free-loaders is now over and we will be forced to charge out the services of the staff to non-members. If we wish this union to continue we need to get serious. He has agreed to send out a circular to all current and old members to encourage membership and to let them know exactly what the union is doing for them all.

 

The point made was very clear that we need to work towards becoming self-sufficient once again and not rely on the donor funding which has assisted our capacity building. It is important we keep up the current momentum.

 

Meryl Harrison has informed us that she has officially started to work for Veterinarians For Animal Welfare Zimbabwe (VAWZ), which is a new organisation which is being sponsored to care for animals and wildlife under threat. She may be contacted on 0914-168218 or 0912-308234. Mathias Tengaruwa is also an inspector with VAWZ who may be contacted through the same numbers or else 04-253185/7 (ask for VAWZ).

 

ARAC INFORMATION

 

16 April 2010

 

Communications: Our email list now has 1600 addresses and we have sent out two newsletters and continue to receive feedback comment and new contacts.  If you know of anyone who would like to receive our information or would like to be on our mailing list, please could you forward their details to ARAC.

 

Membership: This now stands at around 250 from 170 and it is pleasing to note that the majority are in the $100 bracket.  We continue to appeal to all out there to consider rejoining the Union. There have been queries on part paid membership who has been evicted midterm – we are looking into this and will report back.

 

Valcon/Consequential Losses: ARAC would like to have Valcon Maps in the office and provide a centre for farmers to see what is going on and help fill in the gaps.  There have been queries over the fee for Valcon, and these will be covered in the Valcon pamphlet to be published next week.

 

Mandate: The mandate has been thoroughly reviewed and is in final draft stage.  The two sub –committees have a good idea of their responsibilities and we hope that in the next week or so we will meet with the Presidium and Director to see how we can best go forward as a team

 

The CFU Now and in the Future: With the mandate to look at recovery ARAC would like to see considerable debate on what the situation for agriculture/farmer representation will look like in the future.

 

For further information contact Shayne or Ben at [email protected] or phone +263 4 309800/19 ext 249 or +263 4 309867

 

ZIMBABWE CROP PRODUCERS’ ASSOCIATION (from the desk of Richard Taylor)

Local as at 16 April 2010 US$

Commodity	GMB	Agrifoods	Intergrain	Staywell	Croplink
White Maize	325	285	270	280	300
Yellow Maize	325	285	270		280
Maize Bran	150	150		120	130
Soyabeans	280	430	350	385	400
Soyabean Meal		500			450
Sorghum	150
Wheat	400		350 350 (imported)	380 (imported)	420 (imported)
Wheat Bran		120	110		130
Sunflowers	250
Groundnuts	250 (unshelled)		800 (shelled)		650 (shelled)

 

South African Foreign Exchange (SAFEX) as at 16 April 2010

Commodity	Rand/Tonne	US$/Tonne	Import Parity Rand/Tonne	Import Parity US$/Tonne
White Maize	1112	157	1272	173
Yellow Maize	1140	155	1300	177
Wheat	2146	292	2306	313
Soyabeans	2505	340	2665	362
Sunflowers	3300	448	3460	470

 

International Gulf

Commodity	US$/Tonne			Import Parity US$/Tonne
Wheat	199			349
Maize	155			305
Soyabeans	368			518

Source: South African Grain Information Service (SAGIS)

16^TH April 2010

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF DAIRY FARMERS (from the desk of Rob Van Vuuren)

 

Please be reminded that the Commodities Forum AGM 2010 meeting at Troutbeck, Nyanga is taking place from 5^th to 7^th July.  The first circular letter with details about this meeting was sent out via e-mail to the NADF group mailing list has been sent out twice now.  Should you not have received this, please e-mail [email protected] and Debbie will gladly forward this to you.

 

STABEX PROGRAMMES

 

Sue Bell and Linda Nielsen have been preparing for the Stabex stand at Zimbabwe International Trade Fair and the NADF/STABEX audit.  We have also managed to procure more cattle for the Centres (Rusitu and Sangano) and bulls for Guruve.  A bulk tank has been installed at Sangano. Tsonzo is building a processing room and equipment is being made and purchased for this. A generator has been purchased for installation at Marirangwe.   Electricity at Rusitu has finally been restored and we await National Dairy Co-op’s attendance to servicing of the bulk tank and compressor.

 

CATTLE PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION

WEEKLY CATTLE PRICES

 

 

 

A reminder that Natanya Scott will be opening her restaurant “Haymakers” at the CFU offices on May 1^st 2010 to coincide with the Sharks vs Bulls Rugby game.

There will be meals, braai packs and braai facilities provided.

 

Please come and support us.

 

All bar profits will be donated to the Zimbabwe Elderly Support Trust.

 

Hope to see you there.

For more info email [email protected] or call 04-309800-19 

 

COMMENTS AND VIEWS

Please let us know your comments and views on items contained within this issue or any other issues of CFU Calling by sending an email to us on [email protected]Disclaimer: This email and files transmitted with it contain confidential and privileged information and are intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to which they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please — do not read, disseminate, distribute, copy or take action in reliance on this email and- delete it immediately and arrange for the deletion thereof on your server, and- notify the administrator immediately. Any unauthorised, use duplication or interception of this e-mail or any files transmitted with it is expressly and strictly prohibited. No representation, guarantee or undertaking (expressed or implied) is made or given- As to the confidentiality or security of the e-mail system’ or as to the accuracy of the information in this email and any files transmitted with it is virus-free. No responsibility or liability is accepted for: the proper, complete transmission of the information contained in this email or any files transmitted with it or any delay in its receipt; or rising from or as a result of the use of or reliance on the content of this email or any files transmitted with it. Any views expressed in this email or any files transmitted with it are not necessarily the views of the Commercial Farmers’ Union. Queries regarding this email or any files transmitted with it should be directed to [email protected]. This disclaimer forms part of the content of this e-mail for purposes of section 11 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 2002 (Act No. 25 of 2002).