Disabled farmer defies odds

Auxilia Katongomara Chronicle Reporter
A BUBI farmer living with a disability has defied odds and put to good use land he was allocated under the government’s land reform programme.Edward Mundanga of Plot 3 Bletchley Block is expecting a bumper harvest of maize despite the drought that hit most parts of the country this farming season.  He is expecting to reap about 10 tonnes.

He is showcasing his produce at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair is underway in Bulawayo.

Mundanga told The Chronicle yesterday that he has never looked back ever since he was allocated land in 2012. He said his expected bumper harvest came as a result of his applying new farming methods that go with the rainfall patterns in Matabeleland North.

“I sowed the first maize seed on November 23 last year and spaced it apart with my last crop sowed in early January as I tried to guard against the effects of the unpredictable rainfall patterns.

“I made sure I planted early maturing seeds. I’m looking forward to a harvest of about 10 tonnes,” said Mundanga.

The farmer, who was raised at the Jairos Jiri Centre, a home for the disabled in Nguboyenja due to his disability, challenged other people living with disabilities in the country to work hard.

“From what I have in my maize field, it’s clear that disability does not mean inability. We can also work and produce. Therefore we must not be looked down upon. We’re urging the government to consider us when distributing farming inputs as a number of times we are marginalised,” said Mundanga.

The Zimbabwe Farmers’ Union (ZFU) has declared most of the maize crop in Matabeleland South, North and parts of the Midlands a write-off due to the long dry spell that hit the country. Mundanga does not have irrigation infrastructure or borehole at the farm.

“If we had an irrigation system at the farm, we could be doing wonders. I’m appealing to the government to assist me drill a borehole because our main source of water in the area is very far,” he said.

The optimistic farmer said he would be reserving two tonnes of maize for other farmers in Ward 10 who failed to register a good harvest.
Mundanga said he had a total of 8,7 hectares of which six hectares are under maize crop, one hectare of sugar beans and a hectare for groundnuts and roundnuts.