A TOBACCO farmers group has urged producers to withhold their crop until government revises its payment regime that has seen growers receive part of their dues using interbank rates pegged at US$1:25 Zimbabwean dollars.<\/p>\n
A single US dollar fetches at least Z$60 on the parallel market.<\/p>\n
In a statement, Tobacco Farmers Union of Zimbabwe (TFUZ) expressed dissatisfaction over government\u2019s payment regime.<\/p>\n
The farmers group is now mobilising growers not to release their crop until the government offers 100 % foreign currency payment.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are calling upon all tobacco farmers to hold their crop until the government pays 100% forex or increases the exchange rate which is currently stagnant at US$1:25 RTGS since the commencement of this year\u2019s selling season.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe above rate is daylight robbery and an insult to tobacco farmers who spent more than 6 months in the fields working on the crop, to get peanuts at the end of the day,\u201d TFUZ said.<\/p>\n
The farmers\u2019 group said the interbank rate was below the parallel market rate which is pegged at US$1:80 RTGS.<\/p>\n
The union said contracting companies and the government were benefiting more from the tobacco farmers\u2019 sweat and warned if allowed to continue, this could see a decrease in the number of farmers who will go for the crop next season, coupled with an increase in contract farming.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is on public record and it is public knowledge that merchants are paid 100% forex. So, why steal the other 50% from the farmers who are responsible for the crop production,\u201d said the group.<\/p>\n
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor, John Mangudya told NewZimbabwe.com recently that chasing after the parallel market exchange rates was not a noble idea.<\/p>\n
\u201cPegging the interbank rate against the parallel market rates is not wise because it is like chasing after the wind,\u201d Mangudya said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe parallel market rates are driven by perceptions. So, the best thing to do is to address the challenges causing these rates to spiral beyond control.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A TOBACCO farmers group has urged producers to withhold their crop until government revises its payment regime that has seen growers receive part of their dues using interbank rates pegged at US$1:25 Zimbabwean dollars. A single US dollar fetches at least Z$60 on the parallel market. In a statement, Tobacco Farmers Union of Zimbabwe (TFUZ) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":24136,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[713,1436],"class_list":{"0":"post-24134","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-all-news","8":"category-community","9":"tag-interbank","10":"tag-tfuz"},"yoast_head":"\n