Toendepi Shonhe is a political economist whose research interests are in agrarian change. He is a researxh associate at Thabo Mbeki African Leadership Institute, Unisa.
The implications of climate change for agricultural commercialisation – and the implications of a... more The implications of climate change for agricultural commercialisation – and the implications of agricultural commercialisation for climate change – are profound. On the one hand, agricultural production is, by nature, highly sensitive to climate change and variability. On the other, commercial agricultural production for international food markets is one of the lead sectors for generating greenhouse gas emissions that are driving anthropogenic climate change. This presents the following conundrum: the burden of the changing climate falls most heavily on smallholder farmers in countries across sub-Saharan Africa, where agricultural commercialisation is seen as an important route out of poverty. What, then, are the prospects for climate-resilient, commercially-viable smallholder agriculture in sub-Saharan African countries which are facing this dilemma? We have explored this question through APRA research produced in Singida, Tanzania, and Mazowe, Zimbabwe.
This study observes the interconnecting influences, over five time periods from 1890-2020, that h... more This study observes the interconnecting influences, over five time periods from 1890-2020, that have affected pathways of commercialisation, mostly of tobacco and maize, in Mvurwi area in northern Mazowe district, Zimbabwe. Through these periods, this paper looks at the political economy of state-farmer alliances; changes in agricultural labour regimes; the dynamics of markets; rural-urban migration and the role of technology and environmental change, asking how each affects the emergence of different commercial agriculture. Based on a wide range of research methods conducted across communal areas, the paper reflects which pathways of commercialisation have emerged through crises, conjunctures and contingencies
Debates on Zimbabwe’s agricultural development have centred on different framings of agriculture ... more Debates on Zimbabwe’s agricultural development have centred on different framings of agriculture viability and land redistribution, which are often antagonistic. Yet, emerging evidence of agricultural commercialisation pathways shows complex and differentiated deepening and stagnations across settlement models. Normative– political constructions of ‘good’, ‘modern’ and ‘progressive’, as advocated by large-scale farmers and some bureaucrats, are countered by proponents for redistribution, mainly the landless rural peasants, keen on social and economic justice as well as democratic land ownership. Across the divide, commercialisation of agriculture is seen as efficient and poverty-reducing. This paper explores how these contrasting debates have played out in Zimbabwe over time, and what interests are aligned with different positions. The paper locates the discussion in a critical examination of the politics of agrarian change and presents a political economy and policy process review ...
After the fast-track land reform programme (FTLRP), there have been two prominent farming models ... more After the fast-track land reform programme (FTLRP), there have been two prominent farming models in Zimbabwe, the small A1 and the large A2 model, whose distinction is primarily based on farm size. This paper examines the efficacy and capacity of both in terms of meeting household and national food self-sufficiency and contributing to the attainment of rural livelihoods outcomes. This paper observes that there are indications that on average, the ‘small’ farmers have higher land utilisation rates as compared to their ‘large’ counterparts. Yet, the government has still shown a bias towards the latter. The paper determines that broad economic and development policy choices and outcomes may continue to be missed for as long as agricultural production–support interventions do not seriously consider the small farmer and the small farm model
Agrarian South: Journal of Political Economy: A triannual Journal of Agrarian South Network and CARES
South–South Cooperation has received significant attention. This article assesses the implication... more South–South Cooperation has received significant attention. This article assesses the implications of Brazil’s More Food International on farm-level social organizations in Goromonzi and Mvurwi districts in Zimbabwe. Data was collected using mainly focus group discussions, key-informant interviews, and the application of a questionnaire among 410 farming households. Differentiated implications and outcomes were observed between the two districts. Overall, the Brazilian programs improved access to tractor and irrigation implements. Still, the implements were more suited to the large-scale production systems rather than to those of the small-scale A1 farmers. Furthermore, a top-down approach utilized by the state has adverse consequences. The prerequisite of forming cooperatives before accessing the tractors and irrigation implements disrupted local political and socio-economic organizations already in existence within the two districts. The study concludes that, while farm mechanizat...
Agricultural mechanisation has once again become a topical issue in African policymaking, followi... more Agricultural mechanisation has once again become a topical issue in African policymaking, following the reinstatement of agriculture in the growth and development agenda for the continent since the turn of the century. This is illustrated by the pan-Africa strategy for agriculture (the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Policy [CAADP]), the renewed interest in the sector within the established aid system, and the unfolding of new South-South relations involving agricultural investments, technology transfers and trade.
This paper analyses the global commodity circuits – value chains – for maize and tobacco in Zimba... more This paper analyses the global commodity circuits – value chains – for maize and tobacco in Zimbabwe, in the context of a reconfigured agrarian economy and COVID-19 induced shocks. The study focuses on the political economy dynamics of agricultural commodity circuits to reveal how they can contribute to understanding the drivers and constraints of agricultural commercialisation in Zimbabwe. This paper traces the circuits of maize and tobacco, the two major crops for food security and foreign currency earnings in Zimbabwe.
This article explores whether mechanisation affects patterns of accumulation and differentiation ... more This article explores whether mechanisation affects patterns of accumulation and differentiation in Zimbabwe's post land reform where policy consistently disadvantages smallholders. Is the latest mechanisation wave any different? The article considers dynamics of tractor access and accumulation trajectories across and within land use types in Mvurwi area. Larger, richer and well-connected farmers draw on patronage networks to access tractors and accumulate further. Some small to medium-scale farmers generate surpluses and invest in tractors or pay for services. Thus, accumulation from above and below feeds social differentiation. Tractor access remains constrained yet mechanisation is only part of the wider post-2000 story.
ABSTRACT The article presents an Emerging Farmer Classification model and its typologies, reveali... more ABSTRACT The article presents an Emerging Farmer Classification model and its typologies, revealing the dominance of medium-scale farmers, consisting of smallholder and medium-sized farms, in Hwedza district. The article argues that the Emerging Farmer Classification reflects ongoing reconfiguration in Hwedza district and is a result of the changing workings of capital after the Fast Track Land Reform era. The analysis is based on a case study involving 230 household interviews across five settlement models, and 20 in-depth interviews. The article identifies capital as a key driver shaping agrarian relations, following land redistribution in Zimbabwe.
ABSTRACTThe emergence of medium-scale farms is having important consequences for agricultural com... more ABSTRACTThe emergence of medium-scale farms is having important consequences for agricultural commercialisation across Africa. This article examines the role of medium-scale A2 farms allocated following Zimbabwe's land reform after 2000. While the existing literature focuses on changing farm size distributions, this article investigates processes of social differentiation across medium-scale farms, based on qualitative-quantitative studies in two contrasting sites (Mvurwi and Masvingo-Gutu). Diverse processes of accumulation are identified across commercial, aspiring and struggling farmers, and linked to contrasting patterns of agricultural production and sale, asset ownership, employment and finance. The ability to mobilise finance, influenced by the state of the macro-economy, as well as forms of political patronage, is identified as a crucial driver. Contrary to assertions that A2 farms are largely occupied by ‘cronies’ and that they are unproductive and under-utilised, a mor...
The implications of climate change for agricultural commercialisation – and the implications of a... more The implications of climate change for agricultural commercialisation – and the implications of agricultural commercialisation for climate change – are profound. On the one hand, agricultural production is, by nature, highly sensitive to climate change and variability. On the other, commercial agricultural production for international food markets is one of the lead sectors for generating greenhouse gas emissions that are driving anthropogenic climate change. This presents the following conundrum: the burden of the changing climate falls most heavily on smallholder farmers in countries across sub-Saharan Africa, where agricultural commercialisation is seen as an important route out of poverty. What, then, are the prospects for climate-resilient, commercially-viable smallholder agriculture in sub-Saharan African countries which are facing this dilemma? We have explored this question through APRA research produced in Singida, Tanzania, and Mazowe, Zimbabwe.
This study observes the interconnecting influences, over five time periods from 1890-2020, that h... more This study observes the interconnecting influences, over five time periods from 1890-2020, that have affected pathways of commercialisation, mostly of tobacco and maize, in Mvurwi area in northern Mazowe district, Zimbabwe. Through these periods, this paper looks at the political economy of state-farmer alliances; changes in agricultural labour regimes; the dynamics of markets; rural-urban migration and the role of technology and environmental change, asking how each affects the emergence of different commercial agriculture. Based on a wide range of research methods conducted across communal areas, the paper reflects which pathways of commercialisation have emerged through crises, conjunctures and contingencies
Debates on Zimbabwe’s agricultural development have centred on different framings of agriculture ... more Debates on Zimbabwe’s agricultural development have centred on different framings of agriculture viability and land redistribution, which are often antagonistic. Yet, emerging evidence of agricultural commercialisation pathways shows complex and differentiated deepening and stagnations across settlement models. Normative– political constructions of ‘good’, ‘modern’ and ‘progressive’, as advocated by large-scale farmers and some bureaucrats, are countered by proponents for redistribution, mainly the landless rural peasants, keen on social and economic justice as well as democratic land ownership. Across the divide, commercialisation of agriculture is seen as efficient and poverty-reducing. This paper explores how these contrasting debates have played out in Zimbabwe over time, and what interests are aligned with different positions. The paper locates the discussion in a critical examination of the politics of agrarian change and presents a political economy and policy process review ...
After the fast-track land reform programme (FTLRP), there have been two prominent farming models ... more After the fast-track land reform programme (FTLRP), there have been two prominent farming models in Zimbabwe, the small A1 and the large A2 model, whose distinction is primarily based on farm size. This paper examines the efficacy and capacity of both in terms of meeting household and national food self-sufficiency and contributing to the attainment of rural livelihoods outcomes. This paper observes that there are indications that on average, the ‘small’ farmers have higher land utilisation rates as compared to their ‘large’ counterparts. Yet, the government has still shown a bias towards the latter. The paper determines that broad economic and development policy choices and outcomes may continue to be missed for as long as agricultural production–support interventions do not seriously consider the small farmer and the small farm model
Agrarian South: Journal of Political Economy: A triannual Journal of Agrarian South Network and CARES
South–South Cooperation has received significant attention. This article assesses the implication... more South–South Cooperation has received significant attention. This article assesses the implications of Brazil’s More Food International on farm-level social organizations in Goromonzi and Mvurwi districts in Zimbabwe. Data was collected using mainly focus group discussions, key-informant interviews, and the application of a questionnaire among 410 farming households. Differentiated implications and outcomes were observed between the two districts. Overall, the Brazilian programs improved access to tractor and irrigation implements. Still, the implements were more suited to the large-scale production systems rather than to those of the small-scale A1 farmers. Furthermore, a top-down approach utilized by the state has adverse consequences. The prerequisite of forming cooperatives before accessing the tractors and irrigation implements disrupted local political and socio-economic organizations already in existence within the two districts. The study concludes that, while farm mechanizat...
Agricultural mechanisation has once again become a topical issue in African policymaking, followi... more Agricultural mechanisation has once again become a topical issue in African policymaking, following the reinstatement of agriculture in the growth and development agenda for the continent since the turn of the century. This is illustrated by the pan-Africa strategy for agriculture (the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Policy [CAADP]), the renewed interest in the sector within the established aid system, and the unfolding of new South-South relations involving agricultural investments, technology transfers and trade.
This paper analyses the global commodity circuits – value chains – for maize and tobacco in Zimba... more This paper analyses the global commodity circuits – value chains – for maize and tobacco in Zimbabwe, in the context of a reconfigured agrarian economy and COVID-19 induced shocks. The study focuses on the political economy dynamics of agricultural commodity circuits to reveal how they can contribute to understanding the drivers and constraints of agricultural commercialisation in Zimbabwe. This paper traces the circuits of maize and tobacco, the two major crops for food security and foreign currency earnings in Zimbabwe.
This article explores whether mechanisation affects patterns of accumulation and differentiation ... more This article explores whether mechanisation affects patterns of accumulation and differentiation in Zimbabwe's post land reform where policy consistently disadvantages smallholders. Is the latest mechanisation wave any different? The article considers dynamics of tractor access and accumulation trajectories across and within land use types in Mvurwi area. Larger, richer and well-connected farmers draw on patronage networks to access tractors and accumulate further. Some small to medium-scale farmers generate surpluses and invest in tractors or pay for services. Thus, accumulation from above and below feeds social differentiation. Tractor access remains constrained yet mechanisation is only part of the wider post-2000 story.
ABSTRACT The article presents an Emerging Farmer Classification model and its typologies, reveali... more ABSTRACT The article presents an Emerging Farmer Classification model and its typologies, revealing the dominance of medium-scale farmers, consisting of smallholder and medium-sized farms, in Hwedza district. The article argues that the Emerging Farmer Classification reflects ongoing reconfiguration in Hwedza district and is a result of the changing workings of capital after the Fast Track Land Reform era. The analysis is based on a case study involving 230 household interviews across five settlement models, and 20 in-depth interviews. The article identifies capital as a key driver shaping agrarian relations, following land redistribution in Zimbabwe.
ABSTRACTThe emergence of medium-scale farms is having important consequences for agricultural com... more ABSTRACTThe emergence of medium-scale farms is having important consequences for agricultural commercialisation across Africa. This article examines the role of medium-scale A2 farms allocated following Zimbabwe's land reform after 2000. While the existing literature focuses on changing farm size distributions, this article investigates processes of social differentiation across medium-scale farms, based on qualitative-quantitative studies in two contrasting sites (Mvurwi and Masvingo-Gutu). Diverse processes of accumulation are identified across commercial, aspiring and struggling farmers, and linked to contrasting patterns of agricultural production and sale, asset ownership, employment and finance. The ability to mobilise finance, influenced by the state of the macro-economy, as well as forms of political patronage, is identified as a crucial driver. Contrary to assertions that A2 farms are largely occupied by ‘cronies’ and that they are unproductive and under-utilised, a mor...
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