Online Reporter
George Maponga in GUTU
The Chief Secretary in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Dr Martin Rushwaya, has earned plaudits for leading the charge to promote rural development through a thriving mixed farm project at his farm in Chiwara communal lands in Gutu South.
Dr Rushwaya and his wife, Mrs Rinah Rushwaya, specialise in livestock rearing and crop production at their Farm 73 in Chiwara.
The thriving farming venture has transformed rural Chiwara, serving as a model of intensive mixed farming under an integrated enterprise that also produces stockfeed for cattle fattening.
The venture has created employment for villagers while also offering the local rural populace a window to look at farming as a business.
Senior government officials, traditional leaders and ordinary villagers this afternoon attended a maize and beef production field day held at the farm.
Farm manager Mr Mohammed Gobvu explained how operations at Farm 73 have been successfully tailored to fatten cattle to produce beef using locally made feed.
Dr Rushwaya also rears goats for meat and the farming has all the requisite infrastructure for a successful beef-producing enterprise and dipping cattle.
Despite being located in agro-ecological region 5, Dr Rushwaya’s farm is expecting a bumper crop of over 50 tonnes of maize from the just-ended season, where 5 hectares were put under maize.
Mrs Rushwaya touted employment opportunities for locals and imparting modern farming methods as some of the benefits to the Chiwara community.
“We expect to harvest eight plus tonnes per hectare from our maize crop that will soon be harvested and we have also created jobs for some locals at our farm,” she said.
Mrs Rushwaya said their farming operations also spoke to Vision 2030 through helping to uplift living standards in Chiwara.
The Director of Coordination of Government programmes in the office of Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Ms Rosemary Chingwe, also hailed Dr Rushwaya and his wife for embracing the Government’s thrust to engender development in rural areas.
