Sisal Production in Madagascar - Coursework Example

Sisal in Madagascar Name Class Unit Introduction Sisal is a cash crop whose leaves are used for their fiber. The processing of sisal starts with the machine decortications. The sisal leaves are crushed by the use of rollers and are finally scrapped. After scrapping, the fiber is then cleaned and dried in a process that can be done mechanically or dried naturally. After the fiber has dried, it is taken through a brushing process. The final weight of the leaf is a fraction of 4% of the initial leaf weight. The average length of the sisal fiber is usually at 80 to 120 cm (Elson, 2008). The fibers are very valuable due to their characteristics which include durability and high strength. The processed fiber is sorted into three grades. The sisal production in the world is in Brazil, Mexico, China, Tanzania, Kenya and Madagascar (Parker, 2007). Brazil has the highest world production at 130,000tons/year while Madagascar has 15,000tons/year. Madagascar has been able to enjoy a strong market on sisal production. During last year, the country demand for sisal fibers outstripped the supply. The country exported a total of 5.441mt with the largest export market being china and Morocco (WGC, 2014). The two countries were able to take 80 percent of all the exported sisal. The country has been unable to meet the growing demand for the sisal worldwide. Despite suffering from bad weather conditions, the country was able to sell sisal at high prices. The shortage of supplies from other producers in the East African region enabled the country to experience a rise in price. Madagascar has a high possibility of enjoying high sisal prices which will be determined by the level of production in Kenya and Tanzania. Sisal is very important in the Madagascar economy. The crop is a major earner of the foreign exchange and also provides jobs to the local population. The main social issue is the fact that most of the locals live under poverty despite working on sisal plantations due to low pay (International Monetary Fund & Madagascar, 2007). Viewpoint from a Madagascan village elder Most of the locals in Madagascar’s sisal growing areas work in plantations as laborers. The country is one of the world poorest nations with most of the citizens living below the poverty line. I talked with one of the elders to get his views on the sisal farming in the country. According to the elders, the surrounding villagers in sisal plantations are the source of labor for the plantations. This gives the plantations the required labor in the farms with ease. The elder claims that the villagers are poor due to exploitation by the plantation owners. The pay which in most cases is counted for ten days a month is not enough to sustain them. For example, the village elder claimed that the pay from the sisal farm amounts to roughly US$1 daily. According to the village elder, most of the workers are supposed to support large families making it impossible to lead a healthy life (Epstein et al. 2010). The village elder claims that there is an inadequacy of arable land as most of the land is occupied by the sisal plantations. When the country is stricken by drought, food prices goes up and most of the villagers suffer from malnutrition. The elder said that the plantations have done very little to help the poor in the region. There is the poor corporate social responsibility by the plantation owners (Epstein et al. 2010). Despite this, the elder claim that the plant have been doing well of late which have led to consistency in manual jobs for the locals. There is hope that with the country experiencing calm after the political strife, reforms will help the sisal workers. The elder hopes that the sisal workers will be able to have a pay increase in line with the increase in the sisal prices. The main worry to him is the fact that despite the recent good pay and prospects for the crop, little have been done to address the welfare of the sisal workers most of whom live under the poverty line. Viewpoint from a sisal producer Madagascar sisal production has received a boom in prices in 2013. This has been a major boost to the sisal producers who have raked high profits in the period. The production is likely to increase following favorable weather conditions that were experienced in this year. I managed to interview one of the plantation owners in Madagascar and got his viewpoint on the sisal farming in the country. According to the producer, the crop has been profitable due to a sharp increase in demand. The export market has been experiencing high demand leading to better returns. The sales from last year were able to sustain the production costs and make high profits. The producer claims that reduced production in Kenya and Tanzania made Madagascar have high demand (WGC, 2014). Madagascar’s sisal is also well known for its high quality which makes it even more desirable. According to the producer, the political situation has made it possible for the country to focus more on the agricultural sector which was affected by the political strife. The producer claims that the main problem that faces the trade is poor shipping arrangements. The profitability of the cash crop has been affected by the delays in shipping due to weather conditions. The country have poor shipping infrastructure leading to the producers suffering from high costs in financing the unshipped stock. The good shipping conditions in other countries producing sisal such as Kenya and Tanzania have disadvantaged Madagascar. The producer claims that the plantation owners have been working hard to better the conditions of their workers. This is in line with the rising cost of living and natural calamities. Despite this, the poverty level in the sisal growing areas is still high. On child labor, the producer claims that the plantations owners have put in place measures that will curb child labor in their farms (Epstein et al. 2010). Viewpoint from a powerful Madagascan politician The political environment has returned to normal after the strife which had destabilized the country. Madagascar government has been able to gain international recognition after the runoff in December 2013. The new government has pledged to help agriculture in order to boost the economy and eradicate poverty. There are also attempts to make sure that the country’s economy is diversified. I talked with one of the country powerful politician on sisal farming. According to the politician, sisal farming has been profitable of late. The year 2013 saw an increase in demand which is expected to continue this year coupled with high prices. The politician claimed that the government has come up with plans to improve the shipping infrastructure to help the export market. He acknowledged that the poor infrastructure has been a major issue in the sisal exportation leading to high costs being incurred by the producers and exporters (WGC, 2014). The politician claims that the available statistics are an indicator that sisal farming has a good future in Madagascar. According to the politician, the government has been on the frontline to address the growing problem of child labor in plantations. He claims that child labor has been the main cause of poor education standards in the country. At the moment, the country has been ranked among the areas with high child labor incidences. The politician said that the government has been talking with the plantation owners to enhance their corporate social responsibility. The poverty levels among those living near sisal plantations are high due to poor pay and lack of social support by the plantation owners. He claims that with the rising sisal prices, it will be possible for the plantation owners to engage in social responsibility hence improving the livelihood. According to the politician, enhancing agriculture and diversifying the economy is the key to development in Madagascar (Epstein et al. 2010). The government is keen to improve in value addition of sisal. Conclusion and recommendations Sisal is a cash crop which is grown due to its fibers. The plant’s leafs are crushed, scraped and dried before being brushed to come up with the fibers. The world largest producer is Brazil who has an annual production of 130,000 tones. Other producers are China, Mexico, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar. Madagascar has been able to benefit from an increase in demand following poor production in Kenya and Tanzania. This has made the demand to outstrip the supply, hence high prices. The main export market for the product is China and Morocco. Sisal is a major foreign exchange earner in Madagascar and provides employment to the locals. The main issue that has been associated with sisal growing in the country is high poverty levels in sisal plantation workers. According to the local village elder, the pay from the sisal plantation is not able to sustain their families. Most of the families working in the sisal plantations are paid an equivalent of roughly a dollar daily. The sisal plantations have been associated with poverty by the locals. According to the sisal producers, the crop has been profitable of late with the demand outstripping the supply. The producers were able to benefit from low production in Kenya and Tanzania. The main problem lies on shipping conditions which increased the production costs. The government has been pledging to improve the shipping infrastructure. There are also high hopes after the country emerged from the political unrest which had adversely affected agriculture. The sisal plantation owners should work to enhance the social responsibility. The working conditions should be improved and pay increased. This will enable the locals to benefit indirectly from the sisal farming. The government should work to eliminate child labor and ensure that the shipping infrastructure is up to standards. Despite the drawbacks in sisal farming in Madagascar, the crop is profitable and has a bright future. References Elson, E. G 2008, Sisal. Access Science. Epstein, G., Heintz, J., Ndikumana, L & Chang, G 2010, Employment, poverty and economic development in Madagascar: A macroeconomic framework, Geneva, ILO. International Monetary Fund & Madagascar 2007, Republic of Madagascar: Poverty reduction strategy paper, Washington, D.C., International Monetary Fund. Parker, P 2007, World market for raw sisal and other genus agave textile fibers, a 2007 global trade perspective, ICON Group. WGC 2014, Market Report Sisal December 2013 /March 2014, WCG, p. 1-4, retrieved 22 August 2014 from, http://www.wgc.de/pdf_data/en_sisal-marketreport-03-2014.pdf. Read More