The previous three blogs have offered some insights into the different dynamics of financing agriculture in Zimbabwe – covering in turn loans/credit, remittances and savings clubs. What is clear is that financing for commercialising and intensifying small- and medium-scale agriculture, now existing particularly in the (not so) new resettlements, is woefully inadequate and this severely constrains investment and in turn wider agricultural growth and economic regeneration.
The lack of finance means that most people for most of the time rely on self-financing, and so flows of investment are subject to the vagaries of the weather and the changing demands for expenditure at a family level (notably for school fees). Self-financing is more possible in the new land reform areas where agricultural surpluses are more common, but this is not guaranteed. In highly differentiated rural societies, it is only those who already relatively rich and have the resources to generate surpluses who can reinvest profits.
This article is from Zimbabweland, a blog written by IDS Research Fellow Ian Scoones. Zimbabweland focuses on issues related to rural livelihoods and land reform in Zimbabwe.
