Annually, the Rural Women\’s Assembly in Zimbabwe participates in the National Good Food and Seed Festival. This year the festival took place from 24 to and 25 September, RWA Zim facilitated the participation of ten rural women farmers at this event. The festival is an exciting and hybrid event where farmers come to exhibit, sell, exchange traditional seeds and traditional cooked food. The National Good Food Festival also gives farmers from across the ten provinces of Zimbabwe the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas and knowledge.

On the first day, RWA women had an opportunity to join farmer dialogues to share their experiences with traditional seeds and traditional food. On the second it was open market day for displaying and exhibiting seeds, and products as well as selling.

Building Back Diversity 

Farmers shared information about their seeds at the festival.

Besides bringing their own revived seeds to market, RWA farmers were able to access new varieties for their own fields. They had the opportunity to move around to learn about sharing seeds.  Mrs Kambanga from Makoni community bought one variety of groundnut which is called Bob White. She was delighted to see how other farmers appreciated her for having this variety of seed because it is no longer common and is on the verge of extinction. This variety is regarded as women\’s crop and it is the best type of groundnut because it produces the best peanut butter and oil.

People where flocking to the RWA table to exchange seeds. Some farmers who visited the tent were from Chimanimani and Chipinge Districts who lost many of their seeds due Cyclone Idai disaster. From this festival  they had a chance to get new seeds from RWA sisters and this showed solidarity amongst rural women farmers.