Promises and pitfalls: Small-scale farmers’ perspectives on market access initiatives in Jozini, South Africa

Abstract

Small-scale farmers remain systematically excluded from formal markets due to a combination of structural constraints, such as inadequate infra­structure, poor institutional support, and asset-related vulnerabilities that limit their ability to compete. Despite numerous public and private interventions designed to improve market access, these initiatives often fail to address the complexity of farmers’ challenges and their long-term impact. This study critically examines market access interventions affecting the participation of small-scale producers in the Jozini Local Municipality, a socio-economically marginalized rural area in northern KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa, to determine whether they effectively reduce systemic barriers or reproduce inequalities. Guided by the asset vulnerability analytical framework (AVAF), this study examines the relevance, implementation, and sustainability of these interventions. We used focus-group discussions and semi-structured interviews to investigate how farmers experience and interpret interventions aimed at improving market participation. The findings reveal widespread dissatisfaction with many programs due to poor implementation, limited reach, lack of coordination, inadequate maintenance, insufficient training, and weak communication. These shortcomings continue to limit farmers’ ability to accumulate and effectively utilize physical, financial, and human assets, thereby reinforcing existing vulnerabilities. While the AVAF has been widely used to analyze livelihood and climate-related vulnerabilities in the region, its explicit use in examining market access interventions targeting small-scale farmers appears limited. This study, therefore, extends the application of the AVAF by examining how market access interventions shape producers’ asset vulnerabilities and market participation from their perspectives. The study concludes that, while multiple market access interventions are present in the Jozini Local Municipality, they have not yielded meaningful improvements in farmers’ participation in formal markets and are therefore unlikely to reduce vulnerability. The study notes that market access interventions in highly marginalized rural contexts are unlikely to reduce vulnerability unless they move beyond fragmented, project-based delivery toward institutionally coordinated, accountable, and context-responsive strategies that support sustained asset accumulation and meaningful integration into formal markets.