Why Nyanza farmers remain poor

Poverty still strikes farmers especially from those from Nyanza despite the fact that they work so hard to cross the poverty line.

Their status is bound majorly to middlemen whom they depend on to market their produce. The agricultural brokers demand for payment prior to and after linking farmers to the buyers. They buy produce in bulk from farmers at very low prices during harvest leaving the farmers with very little to show for their hard work.

 As much as farmers put all their effort in farms and spend almost everything they have in farming, towards the harvest period, they are forced to accept low prices in order to sustain themselves.

Middlemen then store the produce for some months after which they bring them back to the market to the previous buyers at very high prices. This includes livestock farmers who spend a lot in rearing their cattle but end up selling them to middlemen at a loss.

The middlemen get the highest percentage of the shares but still pay the farmers in instalments. They end up getting almost 150% profits from farmers.

Farmers should be encouraged to form active associations which can help them produce goods in large scale and sell their products safely.

I tend to think that this is the best way to curb poverty in Nyanza and its environs