Govt policies uplift living standards in Mash East

Victor Maphosa Mash East Bureau

THE resource mobilisation thrust being spearheaded by the Second Republic under President Mnangagwa is bearing fruit in Mashonaland East, with the province boasting of thriving irrigation schemes supported by major dams, thanks to Government’s unwavering support to the agricultural sector.

Mashonaland East, just like any other province across the country, has benefitted from Government’s dam construction initiative, with the province boasting of two major dams — Chivhu Dam in Chikomba district and Muchekeranwa Dam in Marondera district.

Both dams were commissioned by President Mnangagwa, with Chivhu Dam being the last to be commissioned in June this year.

Irrigation schemes established because of these dams are thriving and now benefiting hundreds of families, in particular, those displaced to pave way for the construction of the dams.

Now, Mashonaland East will soon benefit from yet another large dam, thanks to the Government for funding the construction of Kunzvi Dam in Goromonzi district.

It is crucial to note that these dams play a significant role, especially now when the nation has been warned of an impending severe drought.

Chivhu Dam in Mashonaland East Province, whose model will be replicated across the country, is now feeding Chivhu town with uninterrupted water supply, while beneficiaries of the Government established irrigation scheme are now smiling all the way to the bank.

The Chivhu and Muchekeranwa dam projects, besides providing potable water as well as offering irrigation facilities, will have communities benefit from fishery facilities.

This is part of Government’s broad efforts to accelerate rural and urban development.

This is also part of the Second Republic’s plans to mitigate climate change induced droughts, as these water bodies will come in handy when the nation receives low rains.

The move will translate to food security at household level and ultimately at national level.

Besides Muchekeranwa and Chivhu dams and irrigation schemes, Mashonaland East has other successful irrigation schemes like Saparanyambuya in Uzumba Maramba Pfungwe (UMP) district, Chigondo in Hwedza and Chitora in Mutoko, among others.

In total, Mashonaland East has 42 irrigation schemes, with 2 779 families as beneficiaries, and more are expected to come on board.

Acting director Crop Production in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Mr Leornard Munamati said dams across the province had significantly contributed to food security of Mashonaland East.

“Irrigation schemes have also contributed significantly towards food security in the province. In 2023, Chivhu dam was commissioned and 105ha of wheat was put under irrigation. To date over 60ha of maize is thriving under irrigation with a yield expectation of above 7 tonnes/ha,” he said.

“At Muchekeranwa Dam, 60ha was put under maize last season and 30ha under wheat. In UMP, Saparanyambuya irrigation scheme was commissioned this year and 61ha was grown to wheat for the first time in the history of the district.

“Currently, Kunzvi Dam is under construction and will supply water to a significant area for irrigation. During 2023-24 season it is mandatory for all irrigation schemes to grow maize as we anticipate below normal rainfall. Indeed irrigation is the way to go in mitigating climate change.”

Some of the beneficiaries in several irrigation schemes, are so successful to the extent that they now have regional markets for their produce.

Mr Munamati said the Pfumvudza concept is also bearing fruit in the province, with more that one million plots ready for the 2023-2024 season.

“In 2022-23 season, 510 000 farmers benefitted under the Climate-proofed Presidential Inputs Scheme (Pfumvudza) with about 1.2 million plots prepared. In 2023-24 season, 611 000 farmers have prepared at least 1 Pfumvudza plots and to date 1 614 000 Pfumvudza plots have been prepared,” he said.

“This shows an increase in adoption of conservation agriculture by the small holder farmers. This is more important given the predicted below normal rains this season. The main Pfumvudza principles include minimum disturbance of the soil, mulching and crop rotation.

“The concept enables precision placement of fertiliser. Mulching conserves moisture and reduces growth of weeds. The holes and mulch help to trap running water, thereby promoting more water infiltration. A Pfumvudza plot is small in size (39m x 16m giving 1456 planting stations) so it is easy to manage. It uses less fertiliser compared to the conventional method.

“Pfumvudza has increased yields in Mashonaland East province. On average, maize yields under Pfumvudza was above three tonnes per hectare compared to 1.8 tonnes per hectare under conventional farming, while sorghum yield was up at 4 tonnes per hectare compared to 1.2 tonnes per hectare under conventional farming.

“This contributed a lot to a production of over 400 000 metric tonnes of cereals during 2022-23 season, almost double the cereal requirement of the province.”

Beneficiaries of the Chitora Irrigation Scheme in Mutoko district are now eyeing international markets, as demand for Zimbabwe’s agricultural produce surges.

The Chitora Irrigation Scheme is a smallholder communal irrigation project established by Government.

The main objectives for the establishment were to improve food and nutrition security, empower youth and create employment of the community.

The scheme has a total of 36ha divided into 3 blocks with 75 families as beneficiaries and it specialises in horticultural crop production and the main crops are carrots, peas, cucumbers, butternut, groundnuts and tomatoes.

The irrigation scheme is well maintained with input from beneficiary farmers and the Department of Irrigation.

Well-organised routine maintenance has resulted in the scheme operating efficiently.

Beneficiaries of the scheme said they are smiling all the way to the bank and commended Government for the programme that continuously uplifts their livelihoods.

The chairperson of Chitora Irrigation Scheme, Mr Ernest Chamanga, said besides their breakthrough in local markets, beneficiaries were now vying for regional markets.

“Chitora Irrigation has 74 beneficiaries who are into farming. We plant cucumbers, onions, peas, vegetables, tomatoes, butternuts, among other crops. But our major crop that we always have are carrots. We are supplying local markets and some of our produce finds its way to Mbare markets,” he said.

“However, we supply big companies like Choppies, Wilsgroove, and Selby a. Some of these companies pay in local currency, while others pay in foreign currency. Buyers from Choppies come to our scheme every week and they pay on spot.

“We are happy to be supplying our local markets. Honestly, our standards of living have improved through this scheme. We are now sending our children to the best boarding schools. Some of us have even built beautiful houses while others are buying cars. We can see that our lives are improving and we are happy.”

Mr Chamanga said besides supplying local markets, farmers were now eyeing regional markets and modalities were now underway for the plan to be implemented.

“We always look for better markets for our fresh produce. We want to thank ZimTrade for their facilitation in terms of markets. On that note, we have a team of our members who have already travelled to Mozambique to search for markets and I am happy to say preparations are underway for Chitora Irrigation Scheme to supply markets in Mozambique. Soon we will supply to Mozambique,” he said.

“Right now what is left is a few modalities to be completed so that we can start to supply Mozambican markets. We are happy to participate in the food security of Zimbabwe. It feels good to be feeding the nation.”

Mr Chamanga said with the dedication and passion they have in as far as farming is concerned, the land they have is now small.

He appealed to authorities to avail more land so that they can maximise their potential.

He said some of the beneficiaries are youths and this has enabled them to remain occupied and to desist from drugs.