ZIM Morning Post news editor Nicholas Gochai (ZMP) on Wednesday June 1 had an interview with Zimbabwe Farmers’ Delights Co-Op Country Representative, Kudakwashe Kobiri (KB), to seek clarification on issues around the cooperative’s activities.
Below are excerpts of that interview.
ZMP: As country representative of Farmers’ Delights Co-Op in Zimbabwe, what are your roles?
KB: My roles include facilitating and coordinating the cooperative’s developmental projects and ensure that they are implemented.
ZMP: How would you rate your achievements so far?
KB: We are trying our best. We have so far managed to put together what we believe to be vibrant provincial provinces in the country’s seven provinces. These seven provinces represent the backbone of Farmers’ Delight in Zimbabwe.
Our success or otherwise can be measured by what is happening there in terms of agriculture-related activities.
ZMP: Quite an impressive yardstick. What have been your achievements in that respect?
KB: We have, I would is say, so far managed to source farmland in Chekari, Mashonaland West.
A supermarket in Marondera has also been offered us. This supermarket will prove strategic to our members as farmers around that area will be able to pool their agricultural produce and market them from there.
A Manicaland provincial manager for Arex, Tendai Maboreke, has also promised Farmers’ Delights a 2-hectare plot in Honde Valley. The plot boasts of adequate water for our projected farming activities.
We think this is moderate success for a start.
ZMP: Which provinces are now fully set up?
KB: Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West , Manicaland, Harare, Masvingo, Midlands and Bulawayo; all these we have managed to set up.
ZMP: But we have ten provinces in Zimbabwe…
KB: Admittedly, yes.
Farmers’ Delight still has to build structures in the remaining provinces of Matebeleland North, Matebeleland South and Mashonaland Central.
ZMP: So, what do you intend doing with that piece of land in Honde Valley – a Garden of Eden, I would say?
KB: True. The 2-hectar plot is the dream of ever farmer, but my role as Zimbabwe Country Representative does not extent to to deciding what happens with the sourced land. That now is the role of the Asset Management Committee.
ZMP: What about the farm in Chekari, Mashonaland West, how big is it?
KB: It is just 5 hectares, but we need all the land we can get.
ZMP: Any idea of what other Farmers’ Delights committees have achieved?
KB: I wouldn’t want to speak on behalf of other committees, but I understand that the Media and Ethics Committee has written to First Lady, Amai Auxillia Mnangagwa, Lands minister Perrance Shiri through his WhatsApp platform and the Lands ministry.
We still await their responses.
ZMP: But politicians are always politicians. Their interest are always with their support base.
KB: I don’t know about that, but what prompted us to approach the First Lady was after seeing her much talked about acts of philanthropy.
I also understand that there have been manouevres to liase with traditional leaders – including chiefs – to have land set aside for use by the cooperative.
International organisations like the International Labour Organisation and International Cooperative Alliance have also started warming up to our calls for assistance.
ZMP: What is your message to policy makers about Farmers’ Delights?
KB: Give us land; trust us with it and see what we can do.