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Lovemore Chikova
Development Dialogue
It was extremely good news for rural development when the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) announced at the beginning of this month that major interior dams were now holding 92 percent of their combined capacity.
At least 65 percent of these dams were already full by that time as a result of the good rainy season.
Those involved in rural development will attest that water is at the centre of the modernisation and industrialisation of the far flung areas that had been previously marginalised.
This explains why the Second Republic has been robust in its approach to water infrastructure development in various communities across the country.
Major and small water reservoirs are being constructed in various parts of the country, while irrigation development has been a top priority of President Mnangagwa’s government.
The basis of modernisation and industrialisation for rural areas is agriculture, which leads to food security and the provision of raw materials for industries.
Water then becomes the anchor of such development.
With climate change taking its toll on rural areas that solely rely on agriculture for survival, it is critical and most welcome that the New Dispensation has been on top of the situation through attending to the provision of water.
Apart from dam water, the government is also providing water through the Presidential Rural Development Programme launched by President Mnangagwa in 2021.
The scheme was set to benefit more than 1,8 million households as the Second Republic accelerated efforts to alleviate poverty among the rural folks in line with the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).
According a project update released recently by the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, the scheme targets to drill 35 000 boreholes during the NDS1 phase from 2021 to 2025.
In addition, 9 600 boreholes will be drilled by the Rural Infrastructure Development Agency in selected schools under the same programme.
In the update, the Ministry said a total 571 boreholes had been drilled under the programme as of 20 February this year.
Masvingo Province is leading in the drilling progress with 109 boreholes, followed by Mashonaland West at 93 and Mashonaland Central at 84.
For 2023, the target is to drill 5 184 boreholes
“To ensure the target of 35 000 boreholes under the NDS1 period is achieved, the drilling capacity of the key institutions ZINWA and DDF need to be enhanced through purchase of additional rigs,” said the Ministry.
“Currently ZINWA has 16 rigs under the programme and requires 64 additional rigs in order to make significant progress.”
Another important aspect of providing water for rural development are dams, with the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development already implementing 13 dam projects expected to be completed in both phases of the NDS1 and NDS2.
It is crucial to note that in the last two years, Government completed and commissioned Marovanyati Dam in Manicaland province and Muchekeranwa Dam in Mashonaland East province.
Chivhu Dam in Mashonaland East province has been substantially completed and will be commissioned soon.
The mega Lake Gwayi Shangani is envisaged to be completed this year, with works already at 70.2 percent.
There are other dam projects scattered across the country at different stages of development.
Concerning irrigation, the Ministry said in its update that the country has about 220 000 hectares equipped with irrigation infrastructure out of which only about 193 000 hectares of the equipped infrastructure is functional.
The country needs at least 350 000 hectares of functional irrigated land as the minimum capacity that will assure that the nation becomes food self-sufficient and a net exporter of grains.
Around 100 000 hectares are already committed to full time crops such as sugarcane, citrus, tea and other crops grown by commercial estates.
Work is now being carried out under the National Accelerated Irrigation Rehabilitation and Development Programme (NAIRDP) to ensure irrigation pushed forward the thrust to boost national agricultural productivity and at the same time counter the effects of climate change.
Accordingly, Government has since set aside $29 billion for irrigation rehabilitation and development of 12 800 hectares for this year, according to the Ministry.
Apart from direct government funding, the NAIRDP is being complemented by development partner and private sector supported programmes.
Outlining the ongoing irrigation development programmes, the Ministry said a total of 30 projects covering 1 800 hectares of irrigation were ongoing.
The projects include those in Kanyemba, Nyanyadzi and Mwenje.
But the Ministry noted that most of the contracts for the irrigation projects were outdated, dating back to 2018 and needed revaluation to reflect prevailing market prices.
The MAKA 20000 programme was expected to develop or rehabilitate 20 000 hectares of irrigation for small holder farmers.
Another crucial programme for enhancing irrigation this year is the Smallholder Irrigation Revitalisation Project (SIRP), which is co-funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), OFID and Government.
The programme targets targeting 6 100 hectares of irrigation by this year in Manicaland, Masvingo, Matabeleland South and Midlands provinces.
To date, the cumulative functional area under the project amounts to 2 734,8 hectares, the Ministry revealed.
The Zhove Irrigation Project is another game changer.
Co-funded by Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, Abu Dhabi and Government of Zimbabwe, the project targets 2 500 hectares of irrigation in Beitbridge District.
The Commercial Irrigation Facility being done through an agreement by the Government, CBZ Agroyield and Maka Farm targets to develop 80 000 hectares of irrigation for A2 commercial farmers.
The Government has a running Centre Pivots Irrigation Facility agreement the Agriculture Finance Corporation and Pedstock Investments on the supply and installation of centre pivots targeting 2 900 hectares.
A total of 2 020 hectares is now already functional out of the targeted lot, the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries and Water said.
Feasibility studies and detailed designs were completed on 10 projects and construction works are expected to commence in the first quarter of 2023 under a programme to build climate resilience of vulnerable agricultural livelihoods in southern Zimbabwe.
The project will run until 2027 in Manicaland, Masvingo and Matabeleland South provinces.
There is also the Smallholder Agriculture Cluster Programme co-funded IFAD and the Government targeting 1 400 hectares in five provinces — Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Midlands and Matabeleland North.
The project is still in the inception phase.
The private sector has been playing its part in irrigation development under the auspices of the Irrigation Development Alliance, having contributed 18 000 hectares under functional irrigation facilities last year.
In all these programmes, water is at the centre, justifying the ambitious water harnessing programme the Government has embarked on, with the focus to complete all stalled dam projects.
“Whilst we are aware that the we are endowed with water resources that have a potential to irrigate over two million ha, we will equip with irrigation infrastructure at least 350 000ha to assure the nation of food self-sufficiency and become a net exporter of grains,” said the Ministry in the update.
“Government has developed the National Accelerated Irrigation Rehabilitation and Development Programme anchored by the Agricultural and Food Systems Transformation Strategy which seeks to strengthen resilience of agricultural livelihoods of vulnerable communities particularly women and children, and also graduate the irrigation farmers from pro subsistence to farming as a business, contributing to national and regional food security situation.”
The V30 Accelerator Model, a business model for rural irrigation transformation, is being accelerated, with the Directorate of Water Resources, Irrigation Development and National WASH Coordination having been mandated to ensure the population is water safe and secure.
All this is being done under the collective impact of our agricultural interventions dubbed “Rural Development 8.0”.
These interventions are — the Presidential Rural Development Programme, the Presidential Climate-Proofed Input Scheme, the Presidential Cotton Scheme, the Presidential Blitz Tick Grease Scheme, the Presidential Community Fisheries Scheme, the Presidential Poultry Scheme, the Presidential Goat Scheme and the Local Inventions and Innovations.
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