The young Surinamese farmer Tijkoeri bought some artificial fertiliser with his microcredit. Nevertheless he has a tough existence, as he must support his parents and younger sister.
The 23-year-old rice farmer from Nickerie received a microcredit for the first time last year. And that meant a lot to him, because until then he had been dependent on rice wholesalers for a loan. They charged high interest rates. Also, he was obliged to sell his rice only to them. Thanks to microfinancing, the young farmer has become less dependent on the rice wholesalers.
But he is not completely free of problems. The price he receives for his rice is much too low, while artificial fertiliser and pesticides are expensive. That’s because the rice wholesalers determine the prices through the formation of cartels.
Click here for an account of how the video came about.
This video portrait is part of a series about small businesses that have received microcredit. The eight reports have been produced for Radio Netherlands Worldwide’s series “Microfinance – who profits?” that was launched on 25 January 2010 at a conference at the Peace Palace in The Hague.
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The time needed from sow to harvest is about for Surinamese long grain rice (Basmati in India) 110 days. Rice is a wetland product. This means that the farmer needs lot of water. Mostly they try to harvest 2 or 3 times per year. There is only one (big) rainy season in the tropical area, thus the use of water pumps is necessary. Natural farming methods and no use of fertilisers is out of the quention. The farmer needs, sowing seeds, insecticedes, artificial manure, water pump, harvesting machine (combines), transportation for drying the paddi. The poor farmer invests money (from loans) and at the end there is no fair price for his rice. The theoretical idea of microfinance is fine but is not enough. Offer fair price for the rice of Tjikoeri.
"Offer fair price for the rice of Tjikoeri."..........Raj, what is a fair price for rice? Companies who buy and sell rice must set their prices on their cost by several factors. If the prices are too high, then people who need it the most and can not afford to purchase the rice. If it is too low, the growers lose money and can not afford to grow it. Overcharging for a product can have adverse affects on numerous other products. When the oil producing nations overcharge for fuel, the other companies and those who transport food have to raise their prices in order to make a profit and not go under. Who suffers the most? The ones from the oil producing countries who have to import their food supplies and the poor people like the man in this article. Too high and no one can afford to buy and growers stop producing for lack of profit. Too low and farmers have to get out of the business and destroy their products. Just like the milk producers in France and the Netherlands did just a few months ago.
Hiram, fair price can be calculated with a simple computer model. The production costs are well known. From the use of a tractor (plough) till the harvest and selling the rice can be calculated per kilogram rice. Add 15-20 % labor cost for Tjikoeri and everybody is fullfilled. Your remark about "destroy" the rice or do not produce rice anymore is right. Let the Oil Producer (very high prices per barrel) eat & drink their crude & sand.
Why don't the farmers go for natural farming methods instead of fertilisers and pesticides, it will save money and soil?
"Why don't the farmers go for natural farming methods instead of fertilisers and pesticides, it will save money and soil?"......... Natural-farming methods are very costly to the buyers and a lot of people don't have the resources to pay for higher prices. Why is the food so high by using your method? If soil conditions are not right for the plants, they will either die or not produce as fertilised plants do. They don't have the nutrients from the soil to grow. If a grower can't produce crops, he or she can't make a living. Also, lack of pesticides will allow insects to destroy the plants. There are too many people on the planet and the method you mentioned restricts a very large population from receiving food. { I do agree with you about the use of pesticides. When one eats food items which have been treated with pesticides, one's body is damaged to your body but what choices does a "poor" person have in choosing their food items. I buy and collect non-hybrid seeds that are not GMO (genetically modified organism) and use no pesticides. As to fertiliser, one can make compost but it is very time consuming. Your method of production is usually for a specific location and group of people who have the resources to buy good food. The production is small but the profit makes-up for it.
Tjikoeri has bad luck (poverty) and not enough education to assess his helpless situation on the long term. He and his fellow sufferers can’t organize a political revolution or riat to do something about his fate. With his new masters, the microfinance international institutions (bank with bonus), he may survive but he is a modern slave. He works very hard and harvest his rice. But at the end he can’t get a reasonable price because there is a cartel of the rice buyers/wholesale dealers. This cartel is the gallow for Tjikoeri. When the international community as a matter of fact wants to do something for Tjikoeri then they have to organize also a market and fair prices for his rice. Till then Tjikoeri and his fellow sufferers will be the modern slaves. Microfinance is not new but a very old local financial system in India and Suriname.
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