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Tobacco is Zimbabwe’s second biggest export.It accounted for a quarter of Zimbabwe’s $3.8 billion in total export earnings in 2017, behind gold. Zimbabwe’s tobacco sales have reached a record high of 237.1 million kilos just as the selling season nears its end.
The sector was previously dominated by white farmers until they were forcibly evicted in a controversial government land seizure drive in 2000.Tens of thousands of black farmers who benefited from the land reforms are growing
tobacco.
Growing demand from China, the world’s biggest smoking nation, and funding from private tobacco companies have boosted output, which plunged to its lowest in 2008.
“In the previous years, we could not satisfy the market, buy now what it means is that we are able to satisfy our orders. So, it means more foreign currency and it also means more income to the tobacco merchants. For the farmers, yeah, they are benefiting quite a lot cause the more the tobacco that you have, the more money that you get,” said tobacco buyer, Edwin Maranga.
Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) data showed that sales of the crop at local auctions had eclipsed the previous record of 236.9 million kg in 2000.Back then, 4,000 white farmers produced 85 percent of the crop.This year 111,000 farmers grew tobacco, up from 81,000 last year, TIMB figures showed.
Tobacco has become the biggest success story of the government’s land reforms in
Zimbabwe, and it can benefit the local people and improves these people's living standard.
