INTRODUCTION |
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| The lack of access that small-scale farmers
have to credit is a serious problem. There isn't a government-owned bank that can provide
the financial resources that they need for the acquisition of the necessary inputs for
their crops. Private banks prefer operating with low risk sectors and establish conditions
that are difficult for a farmer to meet. Obviously, a small-scale farmer from the
altiplano or the valleys cannot count on a six- to eight-month credit with a yearly
interest rate of 13 to 14 percent with a value maintenance. On the other hand, most of the cooperatives that work with credit have not had success, due mostly to lack of management capability and economic resources. Taking the above mentioned situation into account, the |
GCPF/BOL/018/NET/FAO-SNAG
Project, better known as FERTISUELOS, has incorporated into its
activities a credit scheme in mineral and organic fertilizer for small-scale farmers. This bulletin explains, in the first place, the reason why it is necessary to fertilize the cultivate land; secondly, the system proposed by the Project for generating savings and constituting one's own capital for the purchase of mineral fertilizers, necessary for a good harvest. The Project does not intend to substitute credit institutions, instead it hopes to initiate an educational process which can contribute to the creation of a mentality oriented towards financial independence of the farms' resources and above all towards saving, this being an indispensable element in any type of economy. |
