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George Maponga Masvingo Bureau
Minister of State for Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Ezra Chadzamira has been commended for leading by example by fully using agricultural land at his Cresta of Ibeka Farm on the outskirts of Masvingo City.
His efforts help the province and the nation achieve food security in line with President Mnangagwa’s mantra of “Nyika Inovakwa Nevene Vayo”.
Minister Chadzamira is now one of the top wheat growers in Masvingo province and is also into animal husbandry.
The Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development held a field day at his farm where fellow farmers and his workers commended his strong passion for farming.
This season he produced over 72 tonnes from about 24 hectares that he put under irrigation.
Mr Euvencio Svondo of Indladhla Farm said Minister Chadzamira’s reputation as a wheat farmer was growing every year.
“We are very impressed as fellow farmers with the good work that Minister Chadzamira is doing here,” he said. “We have been taking notes from the good work the Minister of State is doing and not only are we getting inspired to fully use the land, but we are also happy that he is leading the way in making sure Masvingo Province becomes food secure.”
Another farmer from Indladhla Farm Number 8, Mr Ammerson Kanhukamwe, said Masvingo Province would soon become a net food exporter if more farmers were able to draw lessons from Minister Chadzamira’s exploits.
“I am very impressed with the exceptional work that is being done here at Cresta of Ibeka by Minister Chadzamira,” he said. “The Minister is leading by example and I want to challenge fellow farmers to draw lessons from him.’’
Mrs Rosemary Mupotsa of Village 8 in Summerton said she was “very impressed” with the good work being done by Minister Chadzamira.
“I think the minister deserves commendation and a pat on the back for the sterling work he is doing here both in crop farming and animal husbandry such that he has managed to inspire other farmers to fully use their land and develop themselves,” she said.
“Besides making sure that Masvingo becomes food secure he has created many jobs for locals, which is in sync with President Mnangagwa’s mantra that, ‘Nyika Inovakwa Nevene Vayo’.’’
Mr Thomas Matirera also of village 8 in Summerton, said Minister Chadzamira continued to prove beyond doubt that there was indeed wealth in the land.
Mr Clayton Mutote, a tractor driver at Minister Chadzamira’s farm, said his boss was a passionate farmer who took President Mnangagwa’s vision of transforming Zimbabwe into an upper middle income society by 2030 seriously.
“As a worker at Cresta Ibeka Farm, I am very happy that we set a good example on how to fully use land,” he said. “We have just finished harvesting wheat which we hope will go a long way in enhancing the province’s food security.’’
Mr Oliver Simbanayi, an Agritex administrative officer in Masvingo, commended Minister Chadzamira for mastering both crop farming and animal husbandry.
He said Minister Chadzamira was setting the bar high on the use of crop residue and stover to make stock feed and grow his herd of beef.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Professor Obert Jiri, who toured Minister Chadzamira’s farm after attending the field day, urged wheat farmers to speed up harvesting of their crop before the onset of rains.
“Our message is that all the wheat should be out of the fields before October 30 when the Meteorological Services Department has predicted that rains will start falling,” he said. “Rains will not only make it difficult for combine harvesters to access the fields for harvesting, but they can also affect the quality of the wheat.
“The combine harvesters are there at all the wheat clusters and farmers only need to coordinate with Agritex to ensure all the wheat is safely harvested and stored.”
Mr Caristo Masiiwa, the Masvingo Agricultural and Rural Development Advisory Services director, said over half of the over 2 000ha that was put under wheat in the province had been harvested to date.
“We are running around to make sure that we have enough combine harvesters in areas they are needed to speed up the harvesting and we are on track,” he said. “Going forward, it would be desirable for every district to have its own combine harvester so that harvesting is not delayed.”
Online Reporter