Tech in Africa
E-Livestock Global has partnered with Mastercard to launch Provenance, a blockchain-based solution that looks to empower farmers across Zimbabwe in proving the origins and health records of their livestock, reducing the risk to buyers.
E-Livestock Global’s solution delivers end-to-end visibility to the cattle supply chain. Each cattle is tagged with a unique ultra-high frequency RFID tag by the commercial farmers and dipping officers – – as mandated by the Ministry of Agriculture – who then register it alongside the owner to its solution. Each time the cattle is vaccinated, dipped, or undergoes medical treatment, the tag records this data and adds to its traceability system.
E-Livestock Global looks to leverage Mastercard’s Provenance solution in recording these events to ensure a highly secure and tamper-proof trail of all the animal’s history. This builds confidence in the entire supply chain thanks to the presence of trusted, transparent, and verifiable data. To the farmers, an irrefutable record of ownership that supports its sales and exports is provided, in addition to obtaining loans that rely on the cattle as collateral. Buyers can efficiently manage their operations while guaranteeing product quality to their customers.
Mastercard’s prominence runs on blockchain technology to deliver real-time traceability that bridges the gap between data silos and allows for decisions to be based on shared records that drive trust and accountability between supply chains.
The solution raises new hope for the country’s agricultural system following a serious outbreak of the tick-borne disease in 2018, killing over half a million cattle. The lack of a traceability system has resulted in Zimbabwe being unable to export beef to lucrative markets across Europe and the Middle East. This has resulted in reduced export earnings from beef which is vital to the country’s economy.
Mark Elliot, MasterCard’s Southern Africa Division president said that “Building trust in industries is essential for a functioning and reliable value chain.”
