The harvest is well underway. A number of harvesters have been donated which will speed up the work and ensure that more of the grain is collected. SAZ collects the grain from the small farmers we support. The farmers are paid directly and the produce is collected in our store sheds before being sold on in bigger consignments.
Some generous donors have purchased two sewing machines for the mums of two of the children they are sponsoring. The ladies are delighted. They haven’t used a machine before but they have asked a relative to give them some help and plan to make clothes for their families and to sell.
This will give these ladies a way to earn money to help support their families. They live in a poor area and are struggling just to make ends meet. It is so good to be able to help them to help themselves and provide ongoing income for them.
The 2021 season has finished with most farmers recording a bumper harvest.
Preparations for the 2022 season have begun. Almost double the amount of seed has been distributed to all farmers on the Outgrowers scheme which should translate into a significant increase in yields.
New early maturing varieties of groundnuts are being introduced to try and combat the risk of poor rainfalls later in the season
Sunflower and maize seed has also been distributed to allow farmer to rotate the legume crops with other cash crops.
Overall we expect the scheme to expand by 35% in 2022.
To support the increase we are providing more oxen, more harvesters and more storage space.
A 2021 final report will be issued next month. This will measure the overall impact on farmer livelihoods and the benefits of the SAZ programme in general.
The country is still suffering from the Covid-19 pandemic. Numbers remain low compared to other countries but the economy has been severely affected. Unless there is a freeze on bond repayments the county is likely to default. Credit rating has reduced to ‘junk status’
However, it means that Sterling received by SHAREAfrica Zambia is worth a lot more.
The Feeding Programme is going well. Remote locations have also been visited. The only complaint is that ‘we need more’.
This is just the first month so we will learn as we go. The factory is keeping up with demand