Exploited and impoverished: the painful reality of smallholder farmers in Africa and how technology can help

In Africa particularly Tanzania based on our experience as smallholder farmers, many smallholder farmers do not view agriculture as a profitable business. Even those who do, often do not operate their farms in a way that generates a profit.

 

 For instance, a farmer may spend six months planting rice and then meet with a broker to negotiate the price of their harvest. However, they often agree to a price without considering the costs they incurred during the six months and without calculating potential profit. Consequently, after many years, these farmers remain poor, while brokers and others who buy their products become wealthy.

If one were to visit Agro input shops and encounter real farmers who do not view agriculture as a business, one would feel pity for them. The struggle of these farmers to purchase fertilizers is evident, with prices often fluctuating, and sometimes they are forced to buy in bulk, which is not necessary. This is painful reality.

Another farmer may struggle for months to grow their vegetables or watermelons, without calculating their expenses, the time they invested, or keeping a record of their costs. They often do not have a book that shows the expenses incurred from the beginning until harvest. Consequently, they have no way to know if the time they spent waiting for the harvest equals the value they were paid to sell their produce.

Imagine a farmer waiting for watermelons to grow for three months, only to have brokers from the city come and harvest the watermelons, eating some and destroying others, without regard for the effort the farmer invested. The farmer will pay for transportation to take the watermelons to the market, but will not receive payment until they are sold, which could take weeks. Unfortunately, it is common for brokers to report that the produce is of poor quality, meaning that the farmer must take a loss.

Another issue is the contract farming system, where smallholder farmers grow crops at their expense, often with promises of support from their agricultural extension officers who rarely show up or are not helpful when they do. Some officers add to the farmer's expenses, and when it is time to collect the harvest, the company may report that 50% of the produce is of poor quality. If the farmer asks for the return of the low-quality produce to sell elsewhere, they are refused. The farmer may then take whatever 50% payment is offered, without considering the losses incurred.

These smallholder farmers are often not defended, and their struggle to operate agriculture as a business is not recognized.

A different illustration is that of a farmer who exports his produce, including avocados. However, when the products arrive at the client's destination maybe abroad, the farmer is often blamed for poor quality and damage. This seems unfair, as the farmer bears the burden of all the losses.

This situation raises a crucial question: if farmers are the ones who provide food for us every day, then why are they often among the poorest? With more than 1.3 billion people in Africa relying on food grown by farmers, it's concerning that these same farmers often struggle to make ends meet. Who is taking advantage of them, and how can we help them transition to commercial farming?

This is where MazaoHub technology comes in. The goal of this technology is to ensure transparency in the agriculture supply chain.

Consider a farmer before embarking on farming. MazaoHub provides a unique identification system, utilizing QR codes to locate and track their farm's progress. Upon entering the farm, the farmer can use AI Agronomy to guide them in cultivation. AI Agronomy then performs a farm cost analysis, taking into account factors such as crop, soil data from the MazaoHub Soil Scanner, weather, inputs, and other relevant factors. It then offers step-by-step guidance on everything from land preparation to harvest, continuously monitoring the farmer's progress as if under the supervision of an extension officer. Even those without smartphones can receive text message updates via their featured phones. The buyer can track the production process at every stage, providing transparency and traceability reports.

MazaoHub goes beyond production tracking and offers financial reporting on the farmer's output, allowing them to determine their profit margin in advance and make informed decisions about pricing. The platform empowers farmers to operate profitably as a business, with access to funding, investors, and credit scores. The use of IoT sensors ensures that damaged products are detected, and the production process remains transparent, maintaining the product's quality level while preventing fraud.

Since farming is a business that supports many livelihoods, it is critical that smallholder farmers receive business education with a farm management technology like MazaoHub to ensure the success of their operations. MazaoHub offers guidance on modernizing farming practices, to enable farmers get funding and investors, generating credit scores of each farmer for banks and other financial institutions including digital payments, and producing data to verify a farmer's production and business. This information is available to private individuals, financial institutions, international organizations, angel investors, and venture capitalists.

Are you agricultural stakeholder? If you belong to any of the groups listed below, kindly inform us of your availability, and we will get in touch with you. We aim to collaborate as a united family, and MazaoHub is an all-inclusive farm management system that caters to the needs of all agricultural stakeholders. These include

1.       Farmers i.e smallholder farmers, commercial farmers and emerging farmers,

2.       agro-dealers,

3.       cooperatives and their AMCOS,

4.       manufacturers,

5.       warehouse owners,

6.       banks,

7.       agricultural boards,

8.       ministries of agriculture,

9.       insurance companies,

10.   investors,

11.   agricultural researchers,

12.   seed and input companies,

13.   development institutions like USAID,

14.   extension officers,

15.   exporters, and

16.   traders/brokers.

MazaoHub has provided prospects for all stakeholders mentioned above, and each one benefits from the system according to their specific requirements.

To contact us, please dial +255655973248. You are also welcome to visit our IRINGA BRANCH office situated behind the Sambara Hall or our headquarters located on the 19th floor of the Millennium Tower building, Dar es salaam. Let's have a cup of coffee and discuss ways to revolutionize the agricultural sector together. You can also email us at [email protected].