Written by Florence Sitwaminya, Cooperative Advisor at Agriterra
In the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the members of COOPADI, the cooperative of agricultural producers for integral development, are reaping the rewards of advocacy carried out using the FACT methodology. Thanks to Agriterra's support, they have been able to sign 3-year land rental contracts. This allows them to concentrate on the investments they need to make in their fields to become professional farmers.
In the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the population is exploding. This is particularly true in North Kivu, where, in the highlands of Lubero territory, the land available for cultivation is shrinking daily, as it is being divided up to be inherited by the children of the same family. Yet in this same area, the main activity remains farming, which occupies the majority of rural households in the DRC. Farmers may have tiny land to practice their activity, but landowners often own large tracts alongside them. These areas are often left uncultivated. The situation is similar to that in the Beni region.
It was against this backdrop that COOPADI was founded in 2018. COOPADI is a cooperative based in Lubero, the capital of Lubero territory, with branches in Mbingi, Bikara, Kasugho (Lubero territory) and Kyatsaba (Beni territory). The organisation has 216 members involved in four agricultural sectors: potatoes, maize, beans, and manioc.
In each branch, members are grouped according to the main crop grown. In Lubero centre, the members are potato growers. In Mbingi, they are bean growers, in Kyatsaba, maize growers and in Kasugho, cassava growers. COOPADI's vision is to have members whose products are highly competitive on the market. The mission is to improve members' income levels through agricultural and livestock activities. To this end, COOPADI uses the following strategies: group sales of agricultural products, group purchases of certain inputs, technical training in agricultural practices, etc.
COOPADI members face several challenges, including access to land and the destruction of crops by stray animals.
Some landowners leave large concessions of land unused, while in their area there are a multitude of farmers looking for fields to rent. Sometimes, when this land is rented out, the tenants are chased off at any time before even recovering the value of the funds invested in the farm.
The farmers feel they are in a weak position when it comes to negotiating with the big landowners. The cooperatives, in turn, do not know how to support their members in these negotiations. According to the cooperatives, landowners are not affordable.
For this reason, COOPADI members wanted to be trained in appropriate techniques for an effective advocacy process. So, in April 2023, Agriterra trained them in lobbying and advocacy techniques, using the FACT methodology. FACT is a methodology for preparing proposals based on consultations with members and advice from experts (academics, consultants, etc.) so that the organisation can have a better understanding of the relevant issues and be able to show that the proposals are based on members' real needs.
At the end of the training, a FACT implementation plan was drawn up by the participants, who are members of COOPADI, and a proposal/advocacy note on the theme of access to land was drafted by the members of the cooperative in its three branches : Lubero, Kitsombiro, and Kyatsaba.
At Kitsombiro, COOPADI proposed on 27 August 2023. On 20 November 2023, it was awarded 7 hectares, with a contract signed in Bikara. COOPADI submitted its proposal to the concessionaire on 27 July 2023. On 24 October 2023, COOPADI was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief, having signed a contract with a local concessionaire for the cultivation of maize over an area of 8 hectares. In Mulo, a district of the rural commune of Lubero, COOPADI sent its letter dated 4 July 2023. If, by verbal agreement, the cooperative had already obtained the right to farm one hectare, on 16 October 2023, COOPADI will sign a land rental contract covering 2 hectares.
In each locality, the written contract has been validated by the local public authority for added legitimacy. In Kitsombiro, the contract was validated by the village chief and the group leader. In Mangina, the contract was validated by the head of the Mangodomu neighborhood, where the concession is located, and the mayor of the rural municipality of Mangina. In Mulo, the contract was validated by the head of the Mulo neighborhood and the mayor of the rural municipality of Lubero.
To achieve the desired results, an expert wrote an advocacy note. In this note, the expert made projections of what each hectare of land produces and what this is worth in dollars. These figures were presented to the concession-holders.
They were convinced by the figures for income generated per hectare and season. The expert demonstrated in the proposal that, per hectare and season, for potato cultivation, the net income earned is just over $1,900 (one thousand nine hundred US dollars) in Lubero and Bikara. Still, according to the expert, growing maize on one hectare generates nearly $1,100 (one thousand one hundred US dollars) per season in Kyatsaba.
These figures have been used for lobbying and advocacy, and have enabled 17 hectares to be secured through land rental contracts. Of these 17 hectares, 9 hectares are for potatoes. For maize, 8 hectares have been secured. Based on the expert's projections, we can deduce that the 9 hectares of land yield a net income of around $17,000 (seventeen thousand US dollars) per season, or $35,000 (thirty-five thousand US dollars) per year. In three years, the 9 hectares of land will have brought in almost $105,000 (one hundred and five thousand US dollars) for potato growers.
As for maize, grown by members of the cooperative in the Kyatsaba area, the annual income generated by the 8 hectares is close to $9,000 (nine thousand nine hundred and twenty US dollars). Projected over 3 years, this gives a net income of more than $26,000 (twenty-six thousand US dollars).
Overall, the cumulative income from the 17 hectares is just over $26,000 (twenty-six thousand US dollars) per season. That's $53,000 (fifty-three thousand US dollars) a year. And over 3 years, COOPADI members will have earned, according to the expert's figures, a net income of $159,000 (one hundred and fifty-nine thousand US dollars) from potato cultivation on the 9 hectares in Lubero territory and the 8 hectares of maize in Beni territory.
Agriterra made a 100% contribution to the achievement of this result, as 100% of the FACT training was supported by Agriterra, which also partially financed the consultation sessions held by the cooperative.
Today, happy to have secure fields, the farmers who are members of the Coopérative des producteurs agricoles pour le développement intégral (agricultural producers' cooperative for integral development) feel satisfied with the extended duration of the land rental contract, following advocacy carried out using the FACT methodology with the concessionaires in Mulo and Bikara (Lubero territory) and Kyatsaba (Beni territory).
Thanks to this plea, farmers will be able to apply good cultivation practices, more or less permanently, without fear of being evicted from their fields once they have made them fertile.
At Agriterra, we hope that farmers will be able to take advantage of these contracts. As part of our Farmers-Focused Transformation (FFT) programme, advocacy is one of how we are improving the services that cooperatives provide to enterprising farmers. Through this programme, funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, we are taking cooperatives to the next level.
This activity has contributed enormously to the cooperative's reputation in the area. Several farmers have subsequently expressed a desire to join COOPADI so that they too can benefit from the fields secured by contracts. With the increase in membership, COOPADI will be able to capitalise internally, as the value of membership fees and paid-up shares will rise.
