COMACO's Teachings Bring Real Life Changes for Small-Scale Farmers

In 2009, COMACO purchased a total of 2,748 tons of commodities compared to only 1,241 tons in 2008.  This represented a ZMK 3,904,967,000 increase in revenue added to local farming communities.  Of this amount, ZMK 570,636,000 (or 304 tons) came from commodity market purchases, for which there were none in 2008. 

While these may be large figures, they translate into real life changes for thousands of small-scale farmers.  Mr. Benjamin Sakala, 68, has never slept on a mattress because he was too poor.  From his sale of rice, he now knows the comfort of a good night’s sleep.  Mrs. Maureen Tembo has money to buy vegetable seeds and a watering tin to help supplement her food security and Mr. James Katumbi made enough money from honey and groundnuts to support his son at a secondary boarding school.  In fact, school attendance records show the number of students attending schools in many of the COMACO areas has more than doubled, based on student/teacher ratios. 

There is some sense of stability as families become more self-reliant and better able to support themselves through the markets that COMACO provides.  In the past, large numbers of families (in the thousands) were dependent on food relief.  Purchasing and distributing such relief was expensive.  Today, communities across the Valley are not crying for food assistance as they once did.  Change has come and change continues to happen.   With this improved stability of food and financial resources to meet basic needs, the COMACO message is better understood and appreciated: Conservation pays through legal market, not by poaching.  

In one community, a local traditional ruler passed away.  By custom, people owning firearms would commemorate the passing with traditional firing of local guns.  When the funeral ceremony began, everyone recognized that all the guns from ex-poachers had been surrendered to COMACO and the community realized that for them, poaching was in their past.  Eventually, they found a couple of legal firearms and the ceremony proceeded, but the fact remained in the hearts of all, that farming, not poaching is the future and farming and wildlife can coexist.