Online Reporter
Tapiwanashe Mangwiro
Zimpapers Business Hub
Zimbabwe’s push to reduce food imports and strengthen its domestic value chains is gaining momentum, with value addition of agricultural produce emerging as a key focus area, according to the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA).
Under its latest project prospectus, ZIDA has unveiled a pipeline of agricultural investments spanning crop production, livestock, agro-processing, and special economic zones, positioning the sector as a central pillar of the country’s industrialisation and import substitution agenda.
The emphasis, the agency says, is on moving agriculture beyond primary production into processing, manufacturing and export-ready value chains.
“The prospectus features value-addition and manufacturing projects aimed at supporting import substitution, export growth and deeper regional market integration,” ZIDA said, adding that the opportunities are aligned with national industrial policy priorities and supported by improving infrastructure, policy reforms and rising domestic demand.
Agriculture remains one of Zimbabwe’s most strategically key economic sectors, supporting about 70 percent of livelihoods, contributing roughly 15 percent to gross domestic product and supplying more than 60 percent of raw materials to local manufacturing.
It also accounts for close to 30 percent of export earnings, making it a natural entry point for reducing imports while stimulating industrial growth.
At the heart of the portfolio are integrated agro-industrial projects designed to link farming, processing and logistics within single production ecosystems.
Analysts say this approach tackles a long-standing weakness in the economy: exporting raw produce while importing processed food at a higher cost, and offers a more sustainable path to import substitution built on competitiveness rather than controls.
