Herald Reporter

MORE than 188 000 farming households have strengthened their food production capacity and resilience through a four-year emergency agricultural programme that helped drive record wheat harvests, expand climate-smart agriculture and unlock millions of dollars in private-sector financing for agricultural inputs.

The Zimbabwe Emergency Food Production Project, funded by the African Development Bank through a US$25 million facility under its Transitional Support Facility, provided quality agricultural inputs, improved farming technologies and extension services while promoting climate-smart agriculture across 153 000 hectares.

The programme increased production of drought-tolerant maize and sunflower seed varieties and contributed to average wheat yields of five tonnes per hectare, bolstering national food security.

Government, the African Development Bank and implementing partner, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), last week marked the successful completion of the initiative, which evolved from an emergency response to global food shocks into a long-term investment in agricultural resilience and food sovereignty.

Launched in 2022 in response to the combined impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and global supply chain disruptions, the project was designed to safeguard Zimbabwe’s food production while strengthening the country’s agrifood systems.

Its completion on June 30, 2026, highlighted the benefits of coordinated investment and strong partnerships in transforming agriculture and improving rural livelihoods.

One of the project’s flagship interventions, the Seed Revolving Fund, implemented through AFC Land and Development Bank, supported more than 90 957 farmers, including about 33 108 women, operating in irrigation schemes.

The facility achieved a loan repayment rate of more than 90 percent, demonstrating the growing creditworthiness of smallholder farmers and the viability of sustainable agricultural financing models.

“The Seed Revolving Fund is the blueprint for breaking the cycle of dependency and fostering genuine farmer ownership,” said Permanent Secretary for Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development Professor Obert Jiri during the project’s close-out workshop.

“This is not merely the conclusion of a US$25 million project — it is a celebration of resilience, a testament to the power of strategic partnerships, and a foundational milestone on our transformative journey towards Vision 2030.”

Unlike many emergency response programmes that focus mainly on distributing agricultural inputs, the project adopted an integrated approach that strengthened access to finance, digital services, post-harvest management and institutional capacity.

AfDB country manager for Zimbabwe Ms Eyerusalem Fasika said the programme exceeded its beneficiary target while significantly empowering women farmers.

“Against a target of 180 000 farmers, this project reached over 188 000, with women making up 60 percent of beneficiaries, well above our 40 percent target,” said Ms Fasika.

“These are not just numbers on a page — they represent farming families who adopted new practices, accessed financing, and are now reaping the rewards in their harvests.”

The project also modernised agricultural service delivery through the IDEA farmer registry platform, creating a digital foundation for extension services and agricultural data management.

To reduce post-harvest losses, the programme supplied metal grain silos, threshers, moisture meters and oil-processing equipment, while support extended to the Seed Services Institute and the Crop Breeding Institute strengthened domestic seed production and reduced reliance on imports.

Access to agricultural financing was further expanded through a partial credit guarantee scheme administered by the Africa Fertiliser Financing Mechanism (AFFM) in partnership with Fertiliser and Seeds Group (FSG).

The facility exceeded its original US$15 million target by generating more than US$44 million in fertiliser sales and facilitated the movement of over 80 000 tonnes of fertiliser through 23 private-sector agents and AFC.

“For FAO, this project evolved from a rapid response into a transformative initiative with impacts extending well beyond emergency support,” said FAO Subregional Coordinator for Southern Africa and Representative to Zimbabwe Mr Patrice Talla.

“The project made a significant contribution to building more resilient, inclusive and market-oriented agrifood systems while laying a strong foundation for sustainable agricultural transformation and food security in Zimbabwe.”

Lessons and financing models developed under the programme are now informing Zimbabwe’s Agriculture, Food Systems and Rural Transformation Strategy 2 (2026-2030), which seeks to build a US$15,8 billion agriculture sector by 2030 and increase agriculture’s contribution to gross domestic product to between 12 and 15 percent.

AfDB reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the next phase of Zimbabwe’s agricultural transformation, saying the close-out of the project provided an opportunity to reflect on the achievements realised through four years of partnership and collaboration.