daniel chigunwe
Enacy Mapakame
Zimbabwe is expected to benefit from the vast expertise on soil health at the ongoing COMESA Special Summit of the African Union on Fertiliser and Soil Health in Nairobi, Kenya, which should bolster the agriculture sector.
The region, Zimbabwe included, is looking at ways to improve soil quality for enhanced agriculture production while also coming up with more efficient fertiliser production in an effort to cut on imports.
Many households especially in rural areas rely on rain-fed agriculture mainly small grains, ground nuts, round nuts and livestock. But these have experienced challenges like decline in yields due to droughts and soil degradation.
The use of fertilisers over the years, monoculture and general poor soil management practices such as over-grazing, over-cultivation and cultivating on steep slopes, has resulted in a decline in soil quality.
According to the Zimbabwe Final Country Report on the Land Degradation Neutrality Target Setting Programme, land degradation affects large parts of Zimbabwe, mainly communal areas where annual soil loss averages 3,3 tonnes per hectare.
Such challenges rank among the factors affecting agriculture production, pushing scientists, soil experts, leaders and other stakeholders to come up with ways for sustainable soil management and fertilisers that are ideal for the various regions to boost production.
In his remarks, President Mnangagwa, who is also attending the summit highlighted what the Government of Zimbabwe is doing to enhance agricultural production to ensure food security at the household level.
He said through several intervention measures, Zimbabwe recorded wheat surpluses in the past three years.
“My administration stands ready to broaden partnerships, synergies and investments to enhance crop yields.
“Several opportunities exist for investors to set up new entities or partner local companies through either upgrading existing or introducing new technology to scale up fertiliser production in our country,” he said.
COMESA Secretary General Chileshe Kapwepwe also addressed attendees, highlighting the concerning decline of soil health in many parts of Africa.
She emphasised that this decline poses a threat to the resilience of agricultural systems and sustainable food production. Kapwepwe also noted that compromised soil health inhibits the soil’s ability to respond to yield-enhancing inputs such as fertilisers and improved crop varieties, a situation that increases the vulnerability of smallholder farmers and rural communities to external shocks.
“African governments need to enact enabling policy, legal and regulatory frameworks to guide, support and incentivise the sustainable use of fertilisers and other soil resources,” she said in her statement delivered by Dr Mohamed Kadah, Assistant Secretary General in charge of Programmes.
She added that regulatory provisions for sustainable soil management should address all possible uses of fertilisers and other soil health products and their impacts on the soil and the wider ecosystem, while ensuring consistency and streamlined processes across all concerned governmental agencies.
“In this regard, specific attention should be given to quality assurance, packaging and labelling to deal with the challenges of counterfeit and low-quality products on the market,” she added.
Strengthening of the private sector’s involvement in driving business around soil fertility improvement for food and nutrition security and economic growth on the continent are critical, according to Kapwepwe.
She proposed appropriate schemes such as tax incentives to motivate the private sector, including small and medium-size enterprises to invest in fertiliser production and other soil health improvement products and services.
Some of COMESA’s interventions to drive agricultural transformation and to improve food security in the region include supporting and promoting regional agricultural value chains through initiatives such as the Regional Enterprise Competitiveness and Access to Markets Programme (RECAMP).
COMESA is also promoting regional seed trade through harmonisation of seed regulations to trigger seed trade across the region and enhance farmers access to quality seeds for increased productivity.
This programme is being implemented by the Alliance for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa (ACTESA), which is a specialised agency of COMESA.
The Secretary General further informed the forum about COMESA’s program on fertiliser policy and regulatory harmonisation in partnership with the African Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnership.
This program is aimed at harmonising fertiliser policies and financing mechanisms and promoting regional fertiliser trade.
Bongani Ndlovu