2.1.3. Producción de textos
2.1.3.3. Estrategias de generación de ideas para producir textos narrativos
Given the large number of farmers feeling that they do not have enough food, one of the questions aimed at exploring the reasons why that is the case. Looking at farming-related issues from a farmer’s perspective will help us understand why and how food insecurity is manifested and, more importantly, will help us identify some of the elements that lie behind and explain the failure of some agricultural policies and the fraught relationship between farmers and the state, which will be the focus of the next chapter.
The following table introduces the most common problems reported by the farmers interviewed. 0 10 20 30 40 50 60
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In a country where agriculture is reliant on rain, changes in rain patterns heavily affect production. Rains are often late or scarce, and farmers claim to be ‘confused about the seasons’: they plant the seeds too late, or too early, increasing the risk of them being attacked by insects and armyworms. Other times the rains are too heavy and ruin the harvest, or create landslides, as reported in Kilimanjaro region. Strong wind is also a problem in Kilimanjaro region, where bananas plants are affected and sometimes uprooted.
Lack of inputs, such as hoes and rakes is a problem affecting many farmers. The shops to buy the inputs are far away, and many farmers lack the capital to purchase them. Farmers also blame the quality of seeds, often not productive, or expired and rotten. The majority of farmers buy seeds, and save their seeds very rarely (because of lack of storage and/or scarce harvest), being therefore very dependent on price fluctuation of seeds. The two major seed companies in the areas interviewed are the Tanzanian KIBO Seeds Co. Ltd. and Seed Co. Ltd., while The Agricultural Seeds Agency (ASA) is the agency that distributes seeds at a subsidized price by the government (although the subsidy is not valid in all regions of Tanzania, as we will see in the next chapter).
Furthermore, the seeds distributed at a cheaper price thanks to the subsidy policy are of dubious quality, as several farmers in Kilimanjaro region blamed the ASA for bringing the seeds too late and for providing rotten seeds. For instance, A. H. K., which plants maize, says:
‘Our government is not accountable and effective. Sometimes we want to plant during the season, but the government brings the seeds late, sometimes they get rotten on the way, for example the Irish Potato seeds.
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Everybody blames other people, they blame each other. We elect people, but they do not do what we like them to do, especially about inputs. They told us that the seeds have arrived but when we go in the shop there is nothing. In private shops there are plenty of seeds, but the price is too high for us! This year they gave us some rotten seeds, we planted them but nothing came out! Nobody pays us back for the loss’ (A.H.K., Kigare, 2013).
Another farmer, H.A.K. adds: ‘Sometimes the seeds provided for by the government are useless for this area. They may grow, but are not good for the hills, so they don’t reach full growth and don’t produce any maize’ (H.A.K., Kigare, 2013).
Very few farmers use fertilizer or pesticide because they cannot afford to purchase it, and this limits the agricultural outcome of their fields. In fact, the relatively wealthier farmers that use fertilizers have registered a considerable increase in production of about 30%, and an experimental agricultural project run in the secondary school of the village of Kwala lead to similar results. Nevertheless, ‘knowledge on dosage and effective use of fertiliser is the key, otherwise plants will die and the soil will be impoverished’, as reported by M.K. (Kwala, 2012). Use of manure is common in Kilimanjaro region, while in Coast region it is rare because of the hostilities between farmers and pastoralists (see chapter 7) and the difficulties and costs of transportation.
While some of the issues reported such as weather, lack of inputs, birds and wild animals’ attacks, lack of capital (which translates in difficulties in getting a loan from banks) and poor infrastructure are common to most of the farmers interviewed, there are some important differences between Coast and Kilimanjaro regions. For
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instance, as indicated in the table below, the conflict with pastoralists is a major problem only in Coast region, while no farmer in Kilimanjaro mentioned it. The same goes for the lack of mechanisation since in the villages surveyed in Kilimanjaro region it would be logistically impossible to use a tractor, hence lack of mechanisation is not considered to be a problem. Problems that emerge in Kilimanjaro, and are only marginal in Coast region, are related to the land: being too small, over-used (not fertile) or difficult to acquire due to land legislation and land inheritance customs.
Some of the issues reported are inherently political, while others are less political and more influenced by weather patterns and natural events. But, as explained in chapter 2, there are different ways the state could intervene to mitigate these
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Coast Region Kilimanjaro Region
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problems and improve the agricultural sector, the livelihoods of farmers and their food security condition. In the next chapter we will analyse this in detail, by looking at the most recent agricultural policies implemented by the Tanzanian state and how these policies have been received by rural communities.
5.7. Conclusion
This chapter has offered some insights into the problem of food insecurity in rural Tanzania. Official statistical data are considered useful but their limits are also recognised, especially considering the circumstances in which this data is gathered (an example is provided in chapter 6, section 6.5.1, where the methodology used to assess the level of food insecurity in rural parts of Tanzania is explained). The qualitative approach illustrated in this chapter, on the other hand, has allowed us to get a more detailed picture of the farming households interviewed, their food security condition and the problems they face on a daily basis.
On the basis of this data, this chapter has identified and classified the households interviewed following an asset analysis, which provides a general overview of the socio-economic conditions of each household. According to this classification the households have been so classified: 43 poor and very poor households (group 3 in the tables 3 and 4), 69 poor but resilient households (group 2) and 13 wealthy households (group 1).
The interviews confirm the scarce diversification in the diet of the households interviewed, with ugali being regularly consumed by 96% of the households. Certainly, there are economic reasons behind the choice of ugali instead of rice, but the personal preferences are diverse, in the sense that several people interviewed are used to having ugali and do not mind eating it every day, while others, especially
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young people, would prefer to eat rice but cannot afford it. What is important to note in these declarations is that there is a lack of awareness on the importance of a diversified diet. Hence, especially given the changes in weather pattern which is making the cultivation of certain crops more difficult, it is essential that farmers are informed of the importance of a diversified diet and on how to integrate different crops that could have higher success of growth or could integrate or partly substitute maize (such as sorghum in Kilimanjaro region).
Furthermore, as suggested by Maxwell (1992) and Devereux and Maxwell (2001) the personal perceptions of food security are also given great space in the analysis provided in this chapter. As a matter of fact, more than half of the households interviewed consume three meals per day. Nevertheless, this frequency does not mean that they feel less food insecure or that they consume the quantity or the quality of food they would need to consume in order to feel satisfied. In fact, nearly 70% of the households interviewed claimed not to have enough food. The perception of security is also related to the condition of the households nearby, and are thus relative to the context in which the household live. Keeping in mind both perceptions and effective quantity of food consumed it is clear that the majority of the households interviewed which rely on agriculture are food insecure: only 11 households out of 125 who live of agriculture, feel food secure and eat three times per day, and still there is no guarantee of quality and diversification of food.
This chapter also looked at the problems that farmers face, illustrating the differences in Coast and Kilimanjaro region. Unreliable weather is one of the biggest issues reported, but we will see in the following chapters how other problems reported, for instance the conflict with pastoralists reported in Coast region, the lack of inputs, capital, transport, storage facilities and infrastructures reported in both
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regions, are relevant for this study. In fact, these problems hinder the ability of the farmers to get the required entitlements (in the words of Sen, 1981) to acquire enough food to satisfy the needs of their households and improve their food security condition. Furthermore, many of the issues are inherently political and require a political response to be resolved. In the following chapter this aspect will be clarified and explained in depth.
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