543
concern is that it is hard to plan any long-term investment as most land owners
are unpredictable and keep on changing farming conditions. It came out very
clearly during interviews that in the event of good yield, landlords tend to
inflate the leasing costs, and sometimes stop the renter from farming, pretending that they want to cultivate in the same area for the next season. Therefore,
in the absence of secure tenure and access rights, investing in smallholder irrigation farming is quite problematic.
(ii) Inadequate working capital
Inadequate working capital is among the cross-cutting constraints. Almost
all respondents under different water control were equally affected by capital.
Therefore, the majority of smallholder farmers are incapable of expanding
their farming investment as their savings are too limited, with very marginal
surplus that does not warrant reinvesting. According to Salami et al. (2010),
smallholder farmers depend on savings from their low incomes, which limits
opportunities for expansion. It was further noted that over half of total rural
household income in Tanzania comes from farming, 46.6% from non-farm
employment (wages and self-employment) and less than 4% from remittances.
Because of the lack of collateral and/or credit history, most farmers are
bypassed not only by commercial and national development banks but also by
formal microcredit institutions.
(iii) Insufficient water availability
Almost all respondents cited insufficient water availability as a critical constraint. The majority reported that surface water sources are no longer reliable,
as a result of the increasing competing demands for surface water and the
uncertainties resulting from perturbations of climate variability and change. It
came out clear from interviews that most surface water sources have been
overstressed, and almost all available run-of-the-river has already been allocated. Also, along this is the limited capital to enable investment in water supply solutions such as damming and construction of boreholes for groundwater
mining. Therefore, ensuring reliable water source through water supply solutions is imperative for the enhancement of smallholder farming.
(iv) Poor market and marketing of produce
The study revealed existence of local markets for the agricultural crops for
both small and large scale, mainly for horticultural crops, including vegetable
and fruits that are sold to hotels and lodges. This was more evident in Mara
region than in Iringa. Nevertheless, not all smallholder farmers have access to
these markets, and the majority lack marketing skills. As was accentuated by
Salami et al. (2010), improved access to input and output markets is a key precondition for the transformation of the agricultural sector from subsistence to
commercial production. Smallholder farmers must be able to benefit more
from efficient markets and local-level value addition and be more exposed to
competition. Adequate storage facilities constitute another constraint to both
marketing and food security. This was more evident in Iringa region, where
tomato production under manual and pump irrigation is high, but owing to lack
of rural electrification, there are no storage facilities and most of it rots away.
Smallholder Farming in Mara and Iringa Regions, Tanzania: Current Practices…
concern is that it is hard to plan any long-term investment as most land owners
are unpredictable and keep on changing farming conditions. It came out very
clearly during interviews that in the event of good yield, landlords tend to
inflate the leasing costs, and sometimes stop the renter from farming, pretending that they want to cultivate in the same area for the next season. Therefore,
in the absence of secure tenure and access rights, investing in smallholder irrigation farming is quite problematic.
(ii) Inadequate working capital
Inadequate working capital is among the cross-cutting constraints. Almost
all respondents under different water control were equally affected by capital.
Therefore, the majority of smallholder farmers are incapable of expanding
their farming investment as their savings are too limited, with very marginal
surplus that does not warrant reinvesting. According to Salami et al. (2010),
smallholder farmers depend on savings from their low incomes, which limits
opportunities for expansion. It was further noted that over half of total rural
household income in Tanzania comes from farming, 46.6% from non-farm
employment (wages and self-employment) and less than 4% from remittances.
Because of the lack of collateral and/or credit history, most farmers are
bypassed not only by commercial and national development banks but also by
formal microcredit institutions.
(iii) Insufficient water availability
Almost all respondents cited insufficient water availability as a critical constraint. The majority reported that surface water sources are no longer reliable,
as a result of the increasing competing demands for surface water and the
uncertainties resulting from perturbations of climate variability and change. It
came out clear from interviews that most surface water sources have been
overstressed, and almost all available run-of-the-river has already been allocated. Also, along this is the limited capital to enable investment in water supply solutions such as damming and construction of boreholes for groundwater
mining. Therefore, ensuring reliable water source through water supply solutions is imperative for the enhancement of smallholder farming.
(iv) Poor market and marketing of produce
The study revealed existence of local markets for the agricultural crops for
both small and large scale, mainly for horticultural crops, including vegetable
and fruits that are sold to hotels and lodges. This was more evident in Mara
region than in Iringa. Nevertheless, not all smallholder farmers have access to
these markets, and the majority lack marketing skills. As was accentuated by
Salami et al. (2010), improved access to input and output markets is a key precondition for the transformation of the agricultural sector from subsistence to
commercial production. Smallholder farmers must be able to benefit more
from efficient markets and local-level value addition and be more exposed to
competition. Adequate storage facilities constitute another constraint to both
marketing and food security. This was more evident in Iringa region, where
tomato production under manual and pump irrigation is high, but owing to lack
of rural electrification, there are no storage facilities and most of it rots away.
Smallholder Farming in Mara and Iringa Regions, Tanzania: Current Practices…