Online Reporter
Theseus Mauruki Shambare in VICTORIA FALLS
AGRICULTURAL transformation must go beyond increasing production and create jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities across the entire value chain, Government has said.
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development Deputy Minister Davis Marapira said the sector had the potential to create opportunities in mechanisation, logistics, processing, marketing, financial services and agricultural technology.
Addressing the Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) Zimbabwe Global Summit in Victoria Falls, Deputy Minister Marapira said agricultural growth should be measured not only by production volumes, but also by the livelihoods and economic opportunities generated.
“We must measure agricultural transformation not only by tonnes produced, but also by the economic opportunities and livelihoods created,” he said.
His remarks come as Government seeks to align agricultural transformation with the TNF’s focus on inclusive growth and decent work.
Deputy Minister Marapira said investment in agriculture generated economic activity beyond the farm by creating demand for inputs, machinery, irrigation equipment, transport, storage, finance, insurance, processing, packaging and marketing.
“This means that when we invest in agriculture, we are also investing in a wider network of economic activity,” he said.
He said expanding agricultural value chains could create new employment opportunities as investment flowed into processing, manufacturing, logistics, technology and commercial production.
“Government, business and labour therefore have a shared interest in ensuring that agricultural transformation produces productive employment, skills development and sustainable livelihoods,” he said.
Deputy Minister Marapira said young people, in particular, could participate in the agricultural economy through enterprises that did not necessarily require them to become primary producers.
“The agricultural economy requires more than farmers.
“There are opportunities for young people in mechanisation services, digital agriculture, logistics, processing, marketing, financial services, input supply and agricultural technology,” he said.
He said smallholder farmers should also be integrated into formal agricultural value chains through aggregation, contract farming, out-grower arrangements and structured markets.
Deputy Minister Marapira said access to markets, finance, technology, irrigation, extension services, productive infrastructure and reliable market information remained critical to increasing smallholder participation in agricultural commercialisation.
He said Government’s role was to provide an enabling policy and infrastructure environment, while the private sector should bring investment, technology, innovation and market opportunities.
Financial institutions, he said, should provide appropriate and sustainable agricultural finance, with farmers integrated into competitive value chains.
Government’s approach is anchored on the Agriculture Food Systems and Rural Transformation Strategy II, which seeks to drive productivity, commercialisation, value addition and rural industrialisation.
Deputy Minister Marapira said irrigation development would also contribute to employment creation by providing a foundation for reliable production, higher-value cropping, agro-processing and rural industrialisation.
“Irrigation provides the foundation for reliable production, increased productivity, higher-value cropping, agro-processing and rural industrialisation,” he said.
He said agricultural transformation required collaboration among Government, the private sector, financial institutions, farmers, labour, development partners and research institutions.
“The transformation of Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector requires a partnership,” Deputy Minister Marapira said.
Blessing Chizhande