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Pamela Shumba Chronicle Reporter
ACTING President Cde Joice Mujuru yesterday called on farmers to embrace modern production technologies to boost the country’s food reserves in line with the ideals of the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation, (Zim Asset).In a speech read on her behalf by the Minister of State in the President’s Office Cde Flora Buka during the official opening of the Food Security and Nutrition Summit in Bulawayo, Cde Mujuru said achieving food security was vital to the development of a sound economic base and challenged farmers to utilise their land productively.
“It is necessary for farmers to adopt and benefit from existing technologies as well as have access to resources in order to boost production,” said the Acting President.
She added: “This is in line with our socio-economic blue print ZimAsset. As government we support new advances in science and technology like highly nutritious seeds that can withstand drought and thrive in floods and new tools to help farmers manage risks. It is important for farmers to scale up necessary innovation in today’s global village.”
Cde Mujuru said the food and nutrition cluster was at the heart of ZimAsset with emphasis placed on creating a self sufficient and food surplus economy.
She said: “We want to see Zimbabwe regain its status as the breadbasket of Southern Africa. ZimAsset seeks to build a prosperous, diverse and competitive food security and nutrition sector that contributes significantly to national development.”
This, she said, must be done through a holistic and inclusive economic empowerment strategy that promotes active participation in economic activities.
ZimAsset, which will be implemented up to 2018, is the new economic blueprint adopted to give the government and other stakeholders direction in an attempt to beat stagnation and boost economic performance to improve the livelihood of the people.
The blueprint targets to achieve economic growth averaging six percent annually up to 2018. Acting President Mujuru said the summit presented the opportunity for the private sector to actively participate in the growth of the national economy thereby complementing government efforts.
“As we deliberate and share experiences on these issues during this summit, let us come up with a new alliance, which is not about replacing aid, but combines aid with private capital, provides tools to scale up innovation that is necessary in today’s world and strategies for managing risk,” she said.
“The strategies must cover the internal distribution of food between surplus and deficit production regions within Zimbabwe.”
Cde Mujuru said donor countries, international organisations and the private sector were now aligning their aid with the country’s plans and called on other stakeholders to follow suit.
“It is the alignment of roles and responsibility of all stakeholders that will bring about sustainable development of our agricultural sector,” she said.
Cde Mujuru said government would continue implementing bold policy measures and regulatory reforms that seek to grow the economy.
Before the summit Cde Buka, on behalf of Acting President Mujuru, officially commissioned a new engineering firm, Winnerman Engineering in Belmont industrial area.
The two-day summit is meant to deliberate on ways in which the private sector can forge partnership with government in improving food security through using modern farming systems and strengthened market approaches.
The Minister of State for Provincial Affairs in Bulawayo Cde Eunice Nomthandazo Moyo, Deputy Minister of Agriculture responsible for cropping, mechanisation and irrigation development Cde Davis Marapira, farmers, captains of industry and representatives of non-governmental organisations are attending the summit.
Online Reporter