BVTA's MALI Project Aims to Bridge Market Divide for Zimbabwe's Small-Scale Farmers and Informal Traders

BVTA’s MALI Project Aims to Bridge Market Divide for Zimbabwe’s Small-Scale Farmers and Informal Traders

Bulawayo Vendors and Traders Association (BVTA)’s Market Aggregation, Linking Markets, and Innovation (MALI) Project seeks to empower small-scale farmers and traders in Bulawayo and Matebelaland provinces.

BVTA in partnership with six others which include Emthonjeni Women’s Forum is spearheading the MALI Project to bridge the market divide between small-scale farmers and informal traders. The goal is to promote a conducive working environment and facilitate market linkages by 2027.

Speaking during the MALI Project Inception meeting held on 11 Aug 2023 at BPRA Boardroom at Fidelity Life Building, the BVTA Executive Director, Michael Ndiweni, highlighted the project’s key objectives.

Re-Energize

He stated, “The project seeks to re-energize the demoralized farmers due to lack of support in their agro-businesses. We aim to acquaint partners, SMF, and informal traders with knowledge, information, and skills and advocate for a review of weak, prohibitive legal and policy frameworks.”

Furthermore, the project aims to support SHF and informal traders to transform agricultural products into fully fledged businesses while ensuring value addition like food processing, organic processing, agro-waste processing, branding, bulking, and packaging.

The BVTA Executive Director stated that the project hopes to introduce and inspire green solutions in agriculture, promoting sustainability and resilience during times of disasters, particularly climate change.

Ndiweni emphasized the need for the project, saying, “Bridging the market divide between small holder farmers and informal traders will ensure decent work, deal with exploitative and inaccessible markets, and reduce post-harvest losses. The project will result in improved standards of living for small holder farmers and informal traders, primarily women, who will benefit from expanded business opportunities and fair incomes.”

Monthly Reports

Key stakeholders present at the meeting included the District Development representative, which will consider how the project fits into the district development plans, grant authority to work, sign MoUs that define cooperation, and receive monthly progress reports.

Agritex was in attendance to coordinate the interface with and mobilize small holder farmers to be targeted by the project. Other stakeholders who were present provided advice on promoting business linkages between traders and farmers.

The meeting’s overarching objectives were to clarify the project’s goal, objectives, and targets, create synergies with key stakeholders, involve policymakers from the start, and identify enabling environmental factors with government departments.

BVTA President, Jacqueline Ndlovu hopes that MALI Project is set to be a groundbreaking initiative in bridging the market divide between small holder farmers and informal traders in Zimbabwe.

She emphasized that the BVTA is committed to promoting sustainable livelihoods, effective, equitable, and just food systems, and climate change resilience through the project.

Ready to Implement

“The association and its partners stand ready to implement the project effectively and efficiently to ensure its success,” said Ndlovu.

She added that in the coming months, BVTA and its partners anticipate witnessing the tangible outcomes of the MALI project, as smallholder farmers and informal traders make strides towards increased income, value addition, and market growth.

Lastly, farmers and vendors who attended the meeting applauded BVTA’s project citing that it uplifts Matebelaland and Bulawayo farmers who were not able to sell their produce because of other farmers from Mashonaland who were supplying traders in Bulawayo.