Date of Submission:
Project:
Host Organization:
Project Location:
Date Project Began:
Project History:
AGRIBUSINESS VOLUNTEER PROGRAM
ZIMBABWE
Project Impact Assessment
April 20, 2001
Zimbabwe Agrodealer Development Project, Murewa area
Agrodealers in the Murewa area
Murewa, Mashonaland East Province, Zimbabwe
November 7, 1997
11/7 - 12/10/97
8/19 - 9/11/98
10/20 - 11/12/98
4/7-27/99
7/30 - 8/18/99
Impacts:
Lewis Dow
Louis "Pete" Kabat
Jim Oliver
Leroy Vanicek
Retired Southern States
Coop Ag. Input Managers
Retired Agway Fann
Supply Store Manager
Retired Agway Regional
Manager
Retired Agway Director of
Operations for Distribution
Retired Manager of
independent farmers' coop
VA
MA
FL
PA
NE
Agrodealer Business Management
Agrodealer Business Management
Agrodealer Market Development
Agrodealer Business Planning
Agrodealer Business Planning and
New Business Development
I. Host Agrodealers keep financial records Management Practices, performs and use them to analyze the Financial Table V (c) specific acts profitability oftheir business and Records/Management Yes & VI (b) using the make sound business decisions. 1
information/ Section
skills provided Agrodealers develop budgets and use Management Practices, 50% - Yes Table V (c) by the them to help manage their Budgeting Section 50% - No & VI (b) volunteer businesses. 2
Agrodealers develop business plans Management Practices, Yes Table V (c)
and use them as management tools. 3 planning section & VI (b)
Agrodealers develop marketing plans Management Practices, Table V (c) and use them as management tools. 3 Marketing Section Yes & VI (b)
Agrodealers analyze their expansion Management Practices, New
potential and develop plans to Business Development Yes Table VI (b)
expand. 4 Section
Agrodealers extend credit to Management Practices, Table V (c) customers using improved Credit to Your Customers No
management practices. 8 Section & VI (b)
Page 1
Agrodealers develop credible Management Practices,
applications for credit from suppliers Credit to Your Business Yes Table VI (b)
and financial institutions. 9 Section
Association Involvement
Agrodealers form an association. S Section: Are you a member Yes Table VI (a)
of an agrodealer association?
Agrodealers use their financial Business Activities, Inputs
Section: What volume of records, budgets and business plans agricultural inputs did you to improve and expand their sell this year? Combined with Yes Table V (a)
businesses thereby increasing market
access for smallholder farmers. 6 supplier Credit Limit
information
Agrodealers use their marketing Business Activities, Services
plans to stock and sell the products Section: Did you educate Yes Table V (a) their customers need and educate your customers about how to
II. their customers on their use. 7 use agricultural inputs?
Intermediate
Agrodealers decrease their loan Management Practices,
impacts (link Credit to Your Customers
Level I to delinquency rate from farmers, Section: How many of your Yes Table V (e)
Level III) enabling them to continue lending to
customers repaid the credit & VIII (b)
farmers. 8
on time?
Agrodealers access credit from their Business Activities, Inputs
suppliers and/or financial Section: Did you get any of Yes Table VI (e)
institutions, enabling them to expand these inputs on a credit basis? & VIII (a)
their business operations. 9
Association Involvement
The agrodealer association provides Section: Have you been No Table V (a) services to its members. S benefiting from any ofthe
association services?
Agrodealers sell increased volumes Business Activities, Inputs
III. of agricultural inputs to smallholder Section: Proxy: Did you get Table V (a),
Improvements farmers, increasing their net business any ofthese inputs on a Yes (d), & (e)
in the lives of incomes. 10 credit basis?
host people Smallholder farmers who access Proxy: Level offarmers' (usually an markets via the agrodealers save
increase in money on inputs, improve their savings on inputs due to Yes
Table V (e),
income). productivity and therefore increase agrodealer and farmer (d) & (e)
their incomes. 11 productivity changes?
Employment offamily and non- Employment Section: How family members increase as a result Table V (d)
of increased business for the many people are employed Yes & (e)
agrodealers. 12 by the business?
IV. Spread￾effect: Local trainers use standardized How many additional
improvements materials developed from volunteer agrodealers have received Table V(d)
in the lives of assignments to teach additional agrodealer business Yes & (e), Table
others besides agrodealers. 13 management training from VII (b) & (e)
hosts certified local trainers?
Increased environmental protection Business Activities, Services
due to increased product knowledge Section: Did you educate
Yes Table IX (b)
through agrodealers. your customers about how to
use agricultural inputs?
* Footnote refers to the item within the discussion section that supports each impact.
Page 2
Quotations from Hosts:
".. We can now improve our record keeping to be able to expand our business. Mr. Bill [Tanner] and Mr. Jim [Roser]
taught us proper business management [practices). " - Musarurwa Gonzo, Murewa Agrodealer
"Lew [Dow] explained how to display agricultural inputs, handle customers and change marketing to have more sales.
We have put many things [Lew taught us] in practice [and] there is a great improvement in our business."
- Bishop Nyamakura and Maxwell Madziya, Murewa Agrodealers
AI=m using the pricing and costing practices Pete [Kabat] taught me to make more profit by reducing my margin and
increasing my sales volumes. I also started going to other villages, where there are no agrodealers, to talk to farmers
about the types offertilizer and seed varieties available at my shop. Many ofthese farmers then came to see me at my
shop. As a result, J was able to sell 30 tons offertilizer and 10 tons ofhybrid seed this year compared to 16 and 7 tons
last year, respectively. " - Peter Machinga, Murewa Agrodealer
"[Jim Oliver] clearly explained to us the importance ofkeeping business records, how to make a market plan, how to
research and analyze the market situation as well as how to determine the market share. He [then] gave us some
valuable information on how to [use this to] write the [sections ofthe] business plan. I am now able to write a
business plan,manage my stocks and drawfinal accountsfor my business"
- Tungamirai Mudimu, Murewa Agrodealer
"I used to not keep my records properly ... but now I am trying to do exactly what [Jim Oliver] told me. Ifeel [that] I
will be improving my business and prospering in the future. " - Sydney Chigasa, Murewa Agrodealer
" [Leroy taught us that] it is velY essential to explore new business opportunities. [We have] expanded our product/
service range so that we can realize higher profit levels and enable farmers to have greater access to agricultural
products. " - Sidney Chitekwe, Murewa Agrodealer
Discussion:
Both ofCNFA's pilotAgrodealer Development Projects have been successful at improving smallholder
farmers' access to agricultural inputs, initially for fanners' in Murewa and Gokwe, but also now for the
farmer-customers ofan additional 500 agrodealers throughoutZimbabwe who have received the rolled￾out version ofthe business management training course developed during the pilot projects.
Within the Murewa Agrodealer Development Project, CNFA's efforts to develop rural shopkeepers'
business management skills and relationships with input supply companies have helped 13,525
smallholder farmers' improve access to agricultural inputs such as seed, fertilizer and crop protection
products. CNFA volunteers provided business management training short-courses for the agrodealers
over a two-year period, ending in 1999. In its most recent evaluation, CNFA recorded the following
developments that support the impacts reported in the table above.
1. 85% ofthe shopkeepers/agrodealers had already been keeping basic business records when they
initiated training with CNFA, but only 33% were using them to analyze their business
performance or make informed management decisions. One year after graduating from CNFA
assistance, 100% ofthe surveyed agrodealers were keeping business records, and 71 % regularly
summarized their financial records to develop a profit and loss statement.
2. Prior to receiving training, only 12% ofthe surveyed agrodealers had business budgets and those
that did, did not use them to make financial decisions. This year, 50% ofthe surveyed agrodealers
had detailed budgets and all of them reported that they track their expenses during the year
according to their budget line items and then use that information to evaluate how they are doing.
3. Initially, 25% of the surveyed agrodealers had business plans and 12% had marketing plans,
though many ofthese were not written down or had been developed by outside consultants. This
year, 88% ofthe surveyed agrodealers had current business plans and 75% had marketing plans
Page 3
that they've developep. on their own.
4. Initially, only 50% ofthe surveyed agrodealers had plans to expand their businesses. Now, 100%
have viable expansion plans and implement them on an annual basis. CNFA volunteers Tanner
and Roser encouraged agrodealers to look at opening a second shop in an area where there is
none, or selling new products such as baby chicks. If an agrodealer's limiting factor was
transportation, they advised him to "calculate what it would cost to buy a truck and compare that
to the extra income it would bring and let that be your answer." Since CNFA started training the
Murewa agrodealers, 25% ofthose sampled have opened another retail outlet, while others have
added more storage area to their current store or have purchased a vehicle.
5. In 1996, there was no agrodealer association through which the Murewa agrodealers could
access services or work together. Now, 100% ofthe surveyed agrodealers belong to the LeRoy
Traders' Association, an association they formed themselves following the training they received
from CNFA volunteer LeRoy Vanicek. Unfortunately, the association has not yet begun to
provide meaningful services to its members, but it does hold regular meetings where its members
share information and network amongst themselves.
6. The surveyed agrodealers now sell 56% more agricultural inputs than they previously did
(calculated as the difference between their initial credit limits and current credit limits). CNFA
believes this is a conservative estimate since most agrodealers will re-stock several times during
the year, meaning they would have sold more inputs than the value oftheir annual credit limit.
Actual sales volumes were not available during the baseline year since few of the agrodealers
recorded that information prior to receiving training.
7. Because 100% of agrodealer customers are smallholder farmers, it is important that all
agrodealers educate their ,customers on safe and proper product use and handling. Before
joining the Agrodealer Development Project, only 50% ofthe agrodealers said they educated their
customers about product knowledge through a combination of verbal advice during a sale or at
demonstrations. Now, 100% are active educators using demonstrations, field days, and leaflets as
well as advice during a sale.
8. Initially, agrodealers who extended credit to fanners reported an average loan delinquency rate of
43% and were considering eliminating their credit service. CNFA volunteer Lew Dow taught the
agrodealers several ways to reduce loan delinquency rates by recording credit account
information, aging the credit on a monthly basis, and using a written credit application. CNFA
asked the agrodealers ifthey had begun to use written credit applications, since this is apparently
the starting point for good credit management. No agrodealers responded that they used written
credit applications, either before or after the training; however, they reported that their average
loan delinquency rate had fallen from 43% to 2%. Therefore, CNFA can not confinn that the
reduction in the loan delinquency rate was due to the CNFA training, but believes that this is
probably the case, just not from the use of written applications.
9. Initially, 62% ofthe surveyed agrodealers had credit accounts with their grocery wholesaler but
only one had a credit account directly with an input supply company. Once they decided to
increase their agricultural input activities, it was critical for them to develop direct credit accounts
with manufacturers or their products would be very expensive (due to the inclusion of the
wholesaler as a middleman), reducing much of the benefit of extending the agricultural input
distribution chain to the farmer's doorstep. One year after graduating from the CNFA program,
100% ofthe trained agrodealers surveyed reported that they did have credit accounts with at least
one major input supply company. Many even had credit accounts with two or three supply
Page 4
Murewa Agrodealer Development Project · Summary Profile
Person completing this questionnaire:
Shorai Mwale with summary/analysis
by Tracy Mitchell
same
Date: 1-Mar-01 same
Current exchange rate at date of
completion:
111:~
-10 Z$: 1 USD 58 is official rate/unofficial is - 85
Agrodealers sampled:
10 (out of - 25) agrodealers
* All of those interviewed were male
although 3 of the 25 are female
* Sampled was selected either by
agrodealer's availability or willingness
to complete the questionnaire
same
Name of Training Group: Murewa same
Trainings attended: Average of 2.3/agrodealer same
Do you own the business yourself, or what 63% own their businesses, 25% work
same is your relationship to the owner? for their father, 12% are employees
What is your age? Average is 30, with a range of 20 to
51. same, just 3 - 4 years older
What is your educational level?
Number of shops operated
same
50% - 1 shop, 25% - 2, 25% - 3
Do you own or rent your shop(s)? 63% own, 37% rent same
Do you own a vehicle(s)? 63% No, 13% Yes - 1 vehicle, 25%
Yes - 2 or more vehicles same
Is your business seasonal or year-round? 67% year-round, 33 % seasonal same
Do you/your family also farm?
Do you own title for your shop?
~§\$"g,gi@I:'i" ....;,,/,,; ·;,P:;iV,:;;:,:i:.IMgm,
Do you belong to an agrodealer
association? 100% No
same
same
100% Yes
Have you benefitted from any of the
association's services? na 37% Yes
If so, which services and how? na Sharing of information
How many people are employed by the 3
business (not including yourself)? 4 (33% increase per agrodealer)
How many of these employees are related 0%
to the owner? 13%
95%
100% Yes
87% How many are full time (year-round)
employees?
If you sold groceries, were they a major 71% Yes
source of income for your business?
;~jrj$;iJ:jg§;~jll~'~liM.iti.g.••·':'
::~,iI~:"~ ...::,,,,:;.;;
Did you sell groceries this year?
4/27/01 1 of 6
Murewa Agrodealer Development Project - Summary Profile
Did you sell agricultural inputs this year? 75% Yes
If so, how many companies did you buy 2
the inputs from?
What kind of companies suppiied you with Wholesaler
inputs?
100% Yes
3.5
Manufacturer
How many farmers do you estimate you
supplied inputs to this year?
How many of those were smallholder
farmers (versus) largescale?
What types of agricultural inputs did you
sell this year?
What volume of of seed, fertilizer and
chemicals did you sell this year?
Unknown
100%
1) grain seeds,
2) vegetable seeds,
3) basal and top dressing fertilizer,
4) crop protection products,
5) animal health products,
6) smallscale equipment and
hardware.
100% didn't know
541 (calculated by dividing the volume
of inputs sold by the volume needed
to grow 1 hectare of maize (an
average farmer uses 250 kg fert and
25 kg seed/ha)
same
Same categories of products were
sold, but the number of types of
products stocked at anyone time
increased, as did the volume of
products and stocking period.
100% knew this data. On average,
each agrodealer sold 64 MT of
fertilizer, 15 MT of seed, and 4100
units of crop protection products
Did you get any of these inputs on a credit 62% of the agrodealers had 1 credit
basis? account, mostly from a wholesaler.
100% of the agrodealers had at least
1 credit account, all from
manufacturers/direct distributors.
(60% increase in access to credit)
What is your credit limit with these
companies?
Have you been meeting your scheduled
payments?
Were agricultural input sales a major
source of income for your business?
1~,~iQfB~k§rg~{''''h . Did you buy or trade grain or other crops
this year?
If so, what crops?
What volume of each crop?
What did you do with the crops you
bought?
If you sold them to buyers, which buyers
or markets?
4/27/01
3825 USD
80% Yes
66% Yes
38 % Yes
maize & sunflower seed
Average of 70 MT of maize per
agrodealer. Only one agrodealer
traded in sunflower seed and the
volume was 2 MT.
100% was immediately sold
64% to large commercial buyers.
33 % to commercial farmer
syndicates.
5980 USD (56% increase)
100 % Yes
100% Yes·
63% Yes
same
Average maize volume reduced to 23
MT. Sunflower volume not stated.
50% was immediately sold.
50% was stored and then sold.
43% to large commercial buyers.
43% to local buyers.
14% to so-called horse-traders.
2 of 6
Murewa Agrodealer Development Project - Summary Profile
If you traded crops, were they a major
source of income for your business?
Did you process any crops this year?
If so, what crops did you process?
What were the final products?
What volume of each final product did you
produce thiS year?
What did you do with the final products?
100% Yes
33% Yes
maize and sunflower
stockfeed and cooking oil
15 MT stockfeed, 300 I cooking oil
(total)
stockfeed fed to own livestock,
cooking oil sold in shop
40% Yes (reflects problems that large
comrnercial buyers and commercial
farmer syndicates experienced in
2000)
12% Yes
maize only
stockfeed only
20 MT stockfeed (total)
stockfeed fed to own livestock
Was the sale of processed products a 100°1 Y
. f . r: b'? /0 es major source 0 Income lor your uSlness. same
Did you operate any transport services
this year?
If so, what did you generally transport and
where?
Did you offer any tillage services this
year?
If so, how many hectares would you
estimate you tilled?
What equipment did you use to do the
tillage?
Did you help educate your customers
about how to use agricultural inputs?
If so, descibe how you did this?
If you keep records, do you organize the
transactions according to categories?
Have you summarized this year's
transactions into a profiUloss statement?
33% Yes
maize &cotton hauling, and inputs
delivery
100% No
na
na
50% Yes
50% via demos.
50% via verbal advice during sale.
12% Yes
85% Yes
50% Yes
33% Yes, some via an accountant
same
same
same
same
same
100% Yes
50% via advise during sale.
40% via demonstrations & field days.
10% via leaflets.
same
33% Yes
100% Yes
85% Yes
71% Yes
What was your annual profit level on your 3010 USD (only based on 2
statement? agrodealers' responses)
4/27/01
2080 USD, with a range of 86 USD to
7069 USD (based on 4 agrodealers'
responses)
30f6
Murewa Agrodealer D~.velopment Project • Summary Profile
Was this profit only from agricultural input
sales, or does it include your other
business activities?
Includes everything'
Includes input sales ONLY (part of the
reason why the profit figure has
decreased)
Do you have a current balance sheet for
your business? 100% No 25% Yes
What was your net worth on that
statement? na
6727 USD (based on only 1
agrodealer's response)
Did you increase your net worth this year,
ie make any capital purchases or business 100% No
investments? (please explain)
28% Yes (one by electrifying his shop
and the other by expanding his
storeroom)
Do you routinely use your financial
records to make business decisions? 83% Yes 100% Yes
If so, what -kind of decisions? marketing and self-evaluation
ordering/marketing, self-evaluation,
control costs, evaluate and access
financing
Do you have a bank account? 80% Yes 100% Yes
50% Yes
Standard Chartered, Metropolitian
Bank, CABS, CBZ
12% Yes
Standard Chartered, Metropolitian
Bank, CABS ====~
If so, with which bank?
:.~~,~9:~~lng~;I~!:~&1g;~lf,;i"""
Do you have an annual budget for your
business?
If so, do you track your expenses
throughout the year according to the
budget categeories?
J~,'~[tJ.1,Ii,
Do you have a business plan for your
business?
100% No
25% Yes
100% Yes
88% Yes
If so, do your operations match what you
wrote in your business plan? 50% Yes same
If not, why? unknown 1) price changes due to high inflation
2) lack of financing
How have you used your business plan to unknown improve your business this year?
12% Yes
100% Yes
improve management, stay focused,
reduce costs, and as a guide to apply
for financing.
75% Yes
same
If so, what kind? unknown
checked competition's product line
and prices, talked to farmers, talked to
suppliers, talked to Agritex
Did you estimate your market potential to 100% Yes
help develop that plan? same
Did you promote the use of agricultural
inputs to your customers this year? 25% Yes 100% Yes
4/27/01 40f6
Murewa Agrodealer Development Project - Summary Profile
If so, how?
IfKQRt~"~l.,>
Are you considering expanding your
business?
If so, in what ways?
Have you calculated the costs and
estimated the additional revenue from
those forms of expansion?
To implement them, will you need to
borrow money?
unknown
50% Yes
increase number of shops, increase
volumes
66% Yes
50% Yes
demonstrations, prizes at field days,
rebates, special prices, & verbally
promoting certain products.
100% Yes
increase number of shops, increase
volumes, buy a truck, add a bottle
store
100% Yes
83% Yes
According to your analysis, how long will it U k . n nown take you to recover your Investment?
50% Yes
100% self financed
Do you use a written credit application 100% No
wrlen extending credit to your customers?
Average of 2 years, with a range of
1.5 to 3 years.
62% Yes
same
same
How many customers did you extend
credit to this year?
How many of those customers repaid the
credit on time?
;;!U!g;i""';,';'!"""·g:~~~li~:~Mie:~,:":·
Have you applied for any credit this year
from either suppliers,financial institutions,
or other organizations?
Have any of your applications been
refused?
Average of 46 customers
On average, 57% repaid on time.
62% Yes
10% were not successful
Average of 21 customers
On average, 98% repaid on time.
100% Yes
9% were not successful
Have you received credit from any One rlad received credit from CARE
financial institutions or other organizations in the form of 2000 USD worth of
(not suppliers) this year? inputs.
One had received credit from
Pundutso MFI for 103 USD for
grocery inventory, another had
received credit from Barclay's bank
for 3000 USD to add a second shop.
Have you been meeting your scheduled
payments?
Companies surveyed
Savings to farmers due to agrodealers
stocking agricultural inputs.
100% Yes
25% of the value of the inputs
same
same
How do most farmers use those savings? Buy more inputs
4/27/01
same
5 of 6
Murewa Agrodealer Development Project - Summary Profile
If f b 't h t' th t Increased total productivity leading to
armers uy more Inpu 5, w a IS e ne , d f 'I' d It? Increase ami y Income an
resu . household and national food security
same
How many additional agrodealers have
received agrodealer business
management training from certified local
trainers?
4/27/01
o 500
6of6