Bulawayo Kraal puts 100 hectares under cotton

Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
GOVERNMENT has introduced cotton growing at the Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Scheme in Binga with 100 hectares earmarked for planting the crop this season.
The scheme which is situated about 10km from the Zambezi River is one of the biggest irrigation projects in Matabeleland North.

In an interview yesterday, Matabeleland North irrigation officer Engineer Charles Makhula said 50ha of rain-fed cotton have already been planted with another 50ha set to be planted in due course.

“We’re already planting and so far we have put 50ha of cotton as we target to plant 100ha this planting season,” said Eng Makhula.

He said seeds and fertilizer are already in place.

About 50ha will be put under maize this rainy season, Eng Makhula said.

Both crops are part of the Command Agriculture programme.

In Zimbabwe, cotton is largely grown in Mashonaland West, the Midlands and Mashonaland East and Mashonaland Central provinces while in Matabeleland North only Binga district has over the years commercially grown the crop.

Other parts of the province such as Lupane, Tsholotsho and Bubi intensified cotton farming in the last two years.

In total, 400ha of the 15 000ha irrigation Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Scheme have been cleared and is ready for tilling.

There are four centre pivots at the irrigation scheme which are being under-utilised because of challenges of irrigation pipes that leak.

Eng Makhula said workmen are busy on the ground trying to fix the problem of leaking pipes.

“As we speak I’m at the irrigation site as we’re trying to mend old pipes. We’ve so far laid 1km of new pipes and making final touches on the whole pipeline which we hope will be complete next week. Ideally we should have put a second pipeline but we’re still waiting for the supplier to deliver more pipes,” he said.

Established in 2004, the Bulawayo Kraal Irrigation Scheme is part of the Zambezi Green Valley (Zagreva) project which seeks to ensure a green valley in areas along the Zambezi River stretching from Kazungula to Kariba.

—@ncubeleon