THE IMPORTANCE OF FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE IN FARMING

By Henry Malambo

ONE of the most undermined areas of ‘Farming as a Business’ is the financial management area.

Most farmers do not account for how much money they put into the production of crops each season because they see their farming as a cultural activity due to abundance of land coupled with well wishers in form of NGOs, government support or support from relatives in towns.

This culture of continuously supporting farmers has created a dependency syndrome in our farming communities that has crippled most farmers from thinking independently when it comes to self-financing their farming ventures and has also made them ignore the importance of budgeting and saving.

As a farmer in an input support programme here are some questions you might want to find answers to:

1.     If today my input support organization (NGO, Government, or relative) where to withdraw their support, how will I survive as a farmer?

2.     Of all the years I have been supported with input, have I grown my farming business?

As a farmer it’s important to always save money from your crop sales for the next season activities. This will help us to start our farming activities at our own time and in good time.

As a farmer, always take account of how much it costs you to produce a crop. This will help you in budgeting for the next season because you will know how much you need to save to sustain your farming business.

A farmer that does not know his/her cost of production will always think that all the money received from the sale of crops is profit which leads to a farmer spending everything and waiting for well-wishers to fund his/her farming activities.

As farmers learning about financial independence in farming businesses is key in creating an accountable, sustainable and growth driven agriculture eco system.

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