Online Reporter
Theseus Mauruki Shambare
MORE than one million Zimbabweans are earning a living directly and indirectly from the country’s sugar industry, underlining the sector’s strategic importance to rural industrialisation, employment creation and economic growth.
The sector employs over 30 000 people directly and indirectly, contributes 1,4 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and supports key industries such as transport, manufacturing and energy, making it one of Zimbabwe’s most important agricultural value chains.
Speaking during the Zimbabwe Sugar Association Experiment Station (ZSAES) fifth graduation ceremony for the Farmer Certificate Course in Sugarcane Production in Chiredzi on Friday, Permanent Secretary for Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development Professor Obert Jiri said the industry remained central to the country’s drive towards an upper-middle-income economy by 2030.
The ceremony saw 25 farmers graduating after completing the Farmer Certificate Course in Sugarcane Production, equipping them with technical skills to improve productivity and strengthen the sugar value chain.
“The sugarcane industry is not merely an economic contributor in Zimbabwe but a lifeline for over 30 000 direct and indirect Zimbabwean employees, a pillar of rural industrialisation, and a key player in our national vision to achieve an upper-middle-income society by 2030,” said Prof Jiri.
“It is also important to note that the sector contributes 1.4 percent to our Gross Domestic Product and impacts over one million people, particularly in Masvingo Province, the home of our sugar industry.”
Prof Jiri said Zimbabwe’s sugar industry had recorded significant growth in indigenous participation following the Land Reform Programme, with more than 1 200 registered out-growers now supplying approximately 43 percent of all sugarcane produced in the Southern Lowveld.
“This is a remarkable testament to the success of the Land Reform Programme and the empowerment of our people,” he said.
Despite the progress, Prof Jiri said the industry continued to face several challenges, including low productivity among out-growers compared to large estates, ageing milling equipment, inefficient irrigation systems, high production costs, limited access to affordable long-term finance, competition from imported sugar and high taxation.
To address these constraints, he said, Government had approved the Zimbabwe Sugarcane Industry Development Plan (2026-2035), which seeks to transform the country into a globally competitive, climate-resilient and innovation-driven producer of sugarcane and sugarcane-based products.
The plan was developed jointly by the Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.
Prof Jiri urged growers to embrace innovation, climate-smart agriculture and modern irrigation technologies to improve productivity and profitability while exploring value-addition opportunities such as bio-plastics, speciality chemicals and other sugarcane-based products.
He also encouraged farmers to continue upgrading their technical and business management skills to strengthen the competitiveness of Zimbabwe’s sugar industry.
Zimbabwe Sugar Association Experiment Station director Dr Audrey Rufaro Sitembile Mabveni said the graduating farmers had equipped themselves with practical knowledge needed to improve production despite the challenges posed by climate change, rising input costs and declining soil fertility.
She urged the graduates to use their newly acquired skills to increase productivity, conserve natural resources and share knowledge with other farmers, saying agriculture offered opportunities for innovation, resilience and sustainable rural development.
