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Mashudu Netsianda Bulawayo Bureau
TUCKED deep in the heart of semi-arid Lupane District in Matabeleland North province, Arda Jotsholo Estate, an enviable farming model, has benefited 200 families from the local community through large-scale irrigation farming.
Through the Agricultural Rural Development Authority (Arda), the Government has since 2016 partnered with Mr Brent le Roux, a private investor, to revamp the facility.
Arda Jotsholo has put nearly 300 hectares under wheat, which is supported by the latest irrigation technology.
In line with the rural industrialisation agenda, the farm has further diversified and established a milling unit, which produces eight tonnes of maize meal per day, supplying shops and individuals in Lupane, Binga, Hwange and Victoria Falls.
The milling firm produces eight tonnes of maize meal per day at the farm under the brand “Mat North FTN Jotsholo Gold”.
All activities are anchored on value addition. The employees receive grocery hampers and an assortment of vegetables every month meant to improve livelihoods and contribute to food and nutrition levels.
There is a ready market for the farm in Hwange, Victoria Falls, Binga and Lupane, which form part of the greater Victoria Falls Special Economic Zone greenbelt.
The Government is stepping up its rural industrialisation agenda with a raft of measures, which include incentivising local and foreign investors opting to invest in value chains for rural areas, being put in place to trigger economic activity.
Through rural industrialisation, the Government hopes to stem rural to urban migration, which saps growth from the African countryside, transferring it to towns and cities. Rural industrialisation, which hinges on the Second Republic’s devolution policy, involves nurturing agro-processing start-up enterprises in rural areas through financial and technological support via venture capital funding and Government agencies.
On Wednesday, our Bulawayo Bureau visited Arda Jotsholo when the Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Deputy Minister Davis Marapira, who is responsible for agricultural colleges, water resources, and irrigation development, water, sanitation and hygiene, toured the irrigation scheme.
The Deputy Minister said he was impressed with production at Arda Jotsholo.
“The purpose of my visit was to see irrigation development at Arda Jotsholo and how it is positively affecting the growth of our economy taking into consideration the effects of climate change,” he said.
“I’m happy to note that the irrigation scheme at Arda Jotsholo Estate is fully functional with all pivots working and irrigating about 300 hectares of first grade wheat.
“My assessment is that Arda Jotsholo is doing quite well and partnered very well with the Government. Agriculture is the engine of the economy and we have seen communities benefiting from this scheme through employment creation.”
With Arda anticipating to harvest at least seven tonnes of wheat, Deputy Minister Marapira said the country, which is expecting 380 000 tonnes, will not be need to import wheat in the next 14 months.
“This is import substitution, which means we are not going to import wheat because we will be able to produce. If we further expand irrigation, we will be in a position to export wheat,” he said.
“Once we boost our wheat production, we will be able to save our foreign currency and use it for other essential things. From wheat cropping, the country is expecting 380 000 tonnes, which means we are not going to import wheat as we will be having enough reserves to carry us through for 14 months.”
The Deputy Minister said the completion of Lake Gwayi-Shangani will also help boost Matabeleland North’s gross domestic product through increased agricultural activities.
“There is a serious competition with every province wanting to have a good GDP. If Matabeleland North can maintain these quality agricultural practices, that means Lake Gwayi-Shangani is going to improve the province’s GDP,” he said.
“We are going to create a greenbelt along the Gwayi-Shangani to Bulawayo pipeline. If we maintain this quality of wheat, which is being done at Arda Jotsholo, there is no reason why we are not going to get a million tonnes in the next two years.”
Deputy Minister Marapira said the milling plant at Arda Jotsholo has created employment and added value to the supply chain.
“The milling plant for wheat and maize has created more employment for people within this area,” he said.
Deputy Minister Marapira also said the revival of the agriculture sector as the backbone of the country’s economy is at the heart of the Second Republic.
He said public-private partnerships played a key role in this matrix as they add impetus in fast-tracking attainment of set economic targets.
Arda Jotsholo project manager, Mr Obert Mhere, said they have put 279 hectares of wheat with enough water to sustain the crop.
“We have 279 hectares of wheat and there is enough water to sustain the wheat crop, but we won’t have enough to sustain the summer maize crop because the dam has silted. We have a weir across the Shangani River which holds the water back that we pump for irrigation purposes,” he said.
“We employ up to about 200 people and this depends on the season and our potential yield is seven tonnes per hectare.”
One of the flagship projects is the partnership between Arda and Trek Petroleum at Antelope Estate and Ingwizi Estate.
Since February 2015 when Arda entered into partnership with Trek Petroleum, Antelope and Ingwizi Estates, which were on the verge of collapse, have registered improved output, creating more job opportunities for local communities.
Last year, President Mnangagwa launched the Arda Vision 2030 accelerator model programme at Bubi-Lupane Irrigation Scheme meant to stimulate rural industrialisation through agricultural development in line with Vision 2030, which is anchored on driving the country’s economy into upper middle-income status.
Under this model, the Government is stimulating industrialisation of rural communities through engendering value addition and beneficiation.
Each district across the country will have 200 hectares under irrigation with the beneficiaries being locals.
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