Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
AUGUST 1995
THE DEVELOPMENT OF
MANGOES AS A CASH CROP
IN MUYUNI, UNGUJA
ZCCFSP
P.O. BOX 2283
Zanzibar
Page
Preface ii
Research Methods 3
Preliminary Remarks 12
References 19
PREFACE
This is one of a series of five cash crop case studies undertaken by the socio-
economics section of ZCCFSP in Zanzibar. The main aim of these studies is
to analyse the different factors which have led to local cash crop
development, with a view to forming policy recommendations and devising
practical interventions which might further facilitate and promote this kind of
development in the future. We hope that the lessons which are drawn from
these studies will be of relevance to the Ministry as a whole, and not just to
projects like ZCCFSP whose primary interest is in encouraging sustainable
cash crop production and marketing.
Research Methods
9. This study is based primarily upon fieldwork undertaken in Muyuni by
the agronomy section of ZCCFSP Unguja from January 1995 onwards
(research is still progress at the time of writing). Muyuni is located in the
south-east of Unguja, about half-way along the graded road which runs
south from Jozani to Kizimkazi. Administratively Muyuni forms a single
shehia (formerly CCM branch) in the South district (Wilaya ya Kusini) of
Unguja’s South region (Mkoa wa Kusini). The village is divided into three
sub-units or wards, Muyuni A, B and C, and comprises numerous scattered
hamlets. The combined population of these three wards in the 1988 census
was 2,176 persons, of whom almost half were aged under 15. Muyuni falls
within Unguja’s Farming Systems Zone 4, and was selected as the location
of this study because of the long-standing fame of Boribo Muyuni mangoes
and their recent development as an export crop.
10. As already stated, intensive research was begun in Muyuni in January
1995. A series of in-depth interviews was conducted with farmers, both
singly and in groups, in Muyuni, Makunduchi and Mtende. The notes
recorded during these interviews form the basis for the present paper,
together with information which the agronomy section has continued to
collect in the area. Whereas other ZCCFSP cash crop studies have been
one-off pieces of research, investigation in Muyuni has taken the form of an
ongoing research and development programme in which a wide variety of
technical and practical issues have been addressed. The results of this
work have been described in different ZCCFSP reports, which are listed in
the bibliography at the end of this paper.
11. The results of research on mango marketing conducted by the socio-
economics section of ZCCFSP Unguja have also been incorporated into the
present account. The combination of agronomic and socio-economic
research has meanwhile led to the production of a draft Mango Strategy,
with proposals for the further development of the production of a draft
Mango Strategy, with proposals for the further development of the
production and export of Boribo mangoes. It is expected that this strategy
will be presented to and discussed in detail with farmers, traders and key
ministry (including MALNR) personnel in the first quarter of 1996.
12. A brief literature review has provided additional background data on
mango production in Zanzibar and especially Unguja. No attempt has been
made, however, to make a thorough research of the archives or interview
other key informants either within or outside of MALNR. The full history of
mango production and marketing in Zanzibar therefore remains to be
written, as indeed it does for most other crops on the islands.
13. In writing this report we have tried to highlight the main stages in the
development of mangoes as a cash crop in Muyuni, focusing upon the
Boribo Muyuni variety, and singling out the principal factors which have
contributed towards its current status as an export crop. The logic behind
this form of presentation has already been outlined in the introduction
above. Again, we invite anyone with additional information and/or
alternative interpretations to share them with us, and so add to the potential
value of our research.
Preliminary Remarks
47. The most obvious question to ask is whether and to what extent the
development of mangoes as a cash crop has promoted social and economic
differentiation within the community as well as between the primary
producing community (Muyuni) and others. There is little doubt that the
expansion of the mango trade has led to an increase in farmers’ and traders’
incomes, and that those with access to these incomes have benefited as a
result. A series of questions, however, follows on from this. To what extent
have these benefits been equitably distributed? Have some sections of the
community gained at the expense of others? What other impacts has cash
crop development had in this case? Have there been any negative impacts?
Can any be discerned which pose a threat to the future development of
mango production and marketing?
48. As the last question implies, these are not just academic queries. We
should be careful, however, not to fall into the trap which frequently
ensnares academic impact studies. This is the tendency to view particular
social and economic impacts in isolation, and pass value judgements,
usually negative, on an entire development process on this basis. It is
fashionable, for example, to think of social and economic differentiation, or
at least certain aspects of it, as undesirable. From a purely utopian point of
view this may be justifiable, but in the real world it is often difficult to
disentangle what we may judge as the good and the bad consequences of
development, and even more difficult to devise strategies to maximise one
and minimise the other. This is especially so when the consequences of a
process can also be analysed as part of its causes. We should therefore
also ask what role existing patterns of social and economic differentiation
have played in fostering cash crop development. The answer to this
question (and other like it) may guide us in predicting where similar
developments might occur, what their consequences might be, and what
interventions (if any are needed at all) might be appropriate to promote
sustainable cash crop development and ensure that its benefits are as
widely distributed as possible.
49. With these preliminary remarks in mind, we will now continue to
examine different aspects of the organisation of mango production and
marketing in Muyuni.
References
Freeman-Grenville, G. S. P. 1975 The East African Coast: Select
Documents from the First to the Earlier Nineteenth Century (second edition).
London: Rex Collings.
Oldham, Peter, Jecha R. Ali, and Zubeir J. Khamis 1995 Mango Strategy:
Proposal for a Concerted Expansion of Boribo Mango Production and Export
to the Middle East, 1995 to 2005, draft paper, Zanzibar Cash Crops Farming
Systems Project, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources,
Zanzibar.
Oldham, Peter, Jecha R. Ali, and Zubeir J. Khamis 1996 Report on Visit to
Gulf Markets with Special Attention to Mango, Technical Paper No. TR 96/30,
Zanzibar Cash Crops Farming Systems Project, Ministry of Agriculture,
Livestock and Natural Resources, Zanzibar.
Sethi, W. R. 1949 ‘Mangoes on the East African Coast’, The East African
Agricultural Journal, (October), 98-99.
ZCCFSP 1995 Farming Systems Zones in Pemba and Unguja: Progress and
Current Status, Working Paper No. WP 95/34, Zanzibar Cash Crops Farming
Systems Project, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources,
Zanzibar.