Online Reporter
Nyasha Simbisai, Agriculture Correspondent
MATABELELAND South Province has stepped up livestock drought-proofing measures ahead of the forecast El Niño, stockpiling feed, expanding water access and establishing drought-relief feeding centres in every ward as the province targets zero livestock deaths from feed shortages.
Already, about 850 000 hay bales have been harvested and treated approximately 300 tonnes of stover with urea while authorities are targeting a further 900 000 bales of wheat straw from 4 900 hectares currently under wheat as part of an aggressive drive to build feed reserves before grazing conditions deteriorate.
Matabeleland South Agricultural Development Advisory Services (Adas) livestock specialist in the
Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development, Mr Mario-Hatitye
Muchemwa, said livestock conditions currently ranged from fair to good across all districts, supported by adequate grazing and water.
Some farmers have opened harvested fields for stover grazing, while livestock are accessing water from dams and boreholes.
Mr Muchemwa said extensive borehole drilling under the Presidential Borehole Programme had increased water availability and significantly reduced distances travelled by livestock in search of water.
However, with El Niño forecast to bring drier and hotter conditions, the province is moving early to protect livestock before feed and water supplies come under pressure.
“We are doing community awareness about El Niño and creating anticipatory action to mitigate its effects. Currently, we are crafting appropriate extension messages so that farmers are ready for the shock,” he said.
He said feed conservation was at the heart of the intervention, with hay-baling equipment being hired out to farmers to ensure available crop residues are preserved instead of going to waste.
“We would like to gather every straw and crop residue for stover feeding next season. We don’t want to have a situation like we did during the past drought, where we lost a very high number of animals,” Mr Muchemwa said.
Attention is also turning to irrigation schemes, where wheat straw will be baled immediately after harvesting.
With about 4 900 hectares under wheat, the province projects that approximately 900 000 bales could be recovered for supplementary livestock feeding.
Farmers with irrigation facilities, particularly commercial producers, are being encouraged to produce silage during the second cropping season, while households are being urged to establish one pit for silage and another for stover treatment.
Dairy farmers are also expected to benefit from the Presidential Silage Programme to strengthen on-farm feed reserves.
Extension officers are meanwhile mapping feed resources across the province, identifying where stocks are available and in what quantities.
Mr Muchemwa said the information will enable authorities to identify feed-deficit areas early and move sup-plies from areas with surpluses to vulnerable communities before livestock conditions deteriorate.
Water security interventions are running concurrently, with livestock drinking troughs being constructed at strategic water points.
In another key intervention, drought-relief stover centres are being established in every ward to provide emergency feeding for livestock during periods of acute feed shortages.
Animals losing condition will be brought to the centres for supplementary feeding and returned to their communities once they recover.
The centres will also support livestock fattening, allowing farmers to improve the condition and market value of their animals and avoid distress sales during drought.
Mr Muchemwa said the province was determined to draw lessons from previous droughts by shifting from crisis response to early action.
“All in all, we are in full force and we are ready for El Niño.
“No animal is going to die under our watch. We are fighting for zero deaths due to feed shortages,” he said.
