Abstract
Poverty alleviation and health promotion programs have become part and parcel of life in rural Zambia. It is critical to track the performance of these programs to assess the impact they have on the people involved. The purpose of this study is to ascertain barriers, specifically related to market access and crop yields, faced by smallholder groundnut farmers in Eastern Zambia following implementation of the PROFIT+ program. Focus group discussion and informants were selected based on participation in the PROFIT+. Interview data were then qualitatively analyzed to determine consistent themes among farmers. Farmers highlight three general barriers/risks that impacted both their economic well-being and health. In some cases, these barriers may act as feedback loops, health affecting economic productivity and vice versa. These include (a) a lack of adequate storage facilities (b) exposure to aflatoxins produced by the Aspergillus fungus (c) and exposure to pesticides due to a lack of personal protective equipment. Generally, groundnut farmers have benefitted from the efforts of PROFIT+, though challenges remain. Farmers consistently report increased their crop yields; however, access to outside markets has yet to materialize. Exposure to both aflatoxins and pesticides are concerning, particularly in areas of high stunting rates as these chemicals may exacerbate the effects of malnutrition. Further, changing weather patterns in the context of climate change increase issues faces by smallholder farmers.
Highlights
Many poverty reduction efforts in sub-Saharan Africa focus on reducing the price of staple foods by introducing subsidies and boosting agricultural productivity (Alene & Coulibaly, 2009; Jayne & Rashid, 2013)
With more than 90% of funding for poverty reduction allocated by the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) for the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) and the Farmer Input Support Program (FISP)
Smallholder groundnut farmers in the Chipata District have benefited from the efforts of PROFIT+ and there is optimism as the best practices espoused by this project have increased crop yields
Summary
Many poverty reduction efforts in sub-Saharan Africa focus on reducing the price of staple foods by introducing subsidies and boosting agricultural productivity (Alene & Coulibaly, 2009; Jayne & Rashid, 2013). With more than 90% of funding for poverty reduction allocated by the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) for the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) and the Farmer Input Support Program (FISP) These two programs are responsible for purchasing maize at above-market prices and distributing subsidized fertilizer (Mason et al, 2011). During the 2012/13 growing season approximately 180,000 metric tons of fertilizer were distributed to 900,000 farmers (Ricker-Gilbert et al, 2013) During this time crop yields have increased consistently, though analysis shows that favorable weather conditions likely contributed more significantly than agricultural inputs (Burke et al, 2010; Mason et al, 2011). This primarily involved ensuring that no moisture is introduced to the stored crops during the rainy season and are kept pest-free
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