inaendelea...
Kilimo
Asilimia 80 ya Watanzania wanaishi vijijini na wanategemea Kilimo, Uvuvi na Ufugaji kama vyanzio vuya mapato ili kujipatia maendeleo. Kilimo chetu ni cha kujikimu, tunalima japo kidogo kututosha kwa leo na kesho, lakini msukumo wa kulima chakula cha kutosha hata mtondogoo na wiki mbili zijazo hatuna.
itaendelea....
Rev. Kishoka, there are two issues which I would like to share here. The first one is having the "Agricultural Incubators" and secondly "Agricultural Entrepreneurship Villages"
Despite existence of many opportunities for commercial agriculture in rural areas, the barriers are just too daunting for a significant change in commercialisation of agriculture to take place in the foreseeable future. There is need for an innovative scheme to make agriculture a viable option for graduates of colleges. This is not the case for the time being.
I would recommended we establish hybrid institutions to nurture and produce commercial farmers. The proposed scheme could work as follows. Public or private sector promoters would identify large tracks of accessible land suitable for pre-determined types of crops or livestock for which existence of adequate long-term demand will have to be ascertained.
On this land will be established teaching and accommodation facilities, where students cum incubatees will stay for a fixed term, while collectively opening up and working hard on farms. These institutions will develop and deliver agriculture, agribusiness and entrepreneurship training directly related to developing successful commercial farms in that context. Students will graduate with both a certificate and an operating farm business.
Qualified youngsters who have positively decided they want to develop a career as commercial farmers will apply for the scheme. In order for the cost to be manageable, students will be required to spend significant amount of time doing practical work (labouring).
Towards the end of their incubation/studies, students will be allocated pre-determined developed land where they will build their basic houses. The college/incubator will relocate to another area, leaving hundreds of people, each with a significant, productive piece of farm as a cluster.
The incubatees could organise themselves into a co-operative and or/SACCOs, even before the incubator relocates. The co-operative or association could buy off the common physical facilities (classrooms, etc) so that they become community assets (schools, supermarket, health centre, meeting rooms, etc) for the new farmers upon graduation.
Graduating incubatees may have the option of selling their farms to other people, or some farms so developed could be sold to interested retiring army or other retirees. The advantage of this mode is that many of the constraints are simultaneously addressed.
. . . . I will explain next on Entrepreneurship Villages Concept . . .