Vusumuzi Dube
Simba Jemwa, Sunday News Reporter
THE country is on the verge of its biggest wheat harvest in 60 years, thanks to the Government’s efforts to overcome food supply problems that have been compounded by two decades of sanctions.
Zimbabwe has for decades relied on imports to offset low local production. After Russia’s conflict with Ukraine resulted in global shortages and price hikes, the country wanted to ensure self-sufficiency at all costs, Finance and Economic Development Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube told Sunday News on the sidelines of Zanu-PF’s 7th National People’s Congress that ended in Harare yesterday.
Prof Ncube said Zimbabwe is expecting a harvest of 380 000 tonnes of wheat from season’s winter crop. The last time the nation had a harvest anywhere close to this year’s expectations was 22 years ago when the country harvest 325 000 tonnes of the import cereal which was introduced to the country in 60 years ago.
“As a country, this year’s harvest of wheat is the best we have had in our entire history. If you look back into history, the closest we came to harvesting this much wheat was in 1990 when we managed a harvest of 325 000 tons.
“This year’s harvest surpasses the last one by 80 000 tonnes which leaves with a surplus of 20 000 tonnes. As the Treasury we are very happy with these figures because it means we will be saving on forex outlays. After this harvest, we don’t need to import wheat or flour yet we have enough to for our own needs and then some.”
Several African countries are fighting against reduced wheat imports due to the conflict in Ukraine, but Zimbabwe is unlikely to export any of its surplus in an effort to build a strategic reserve for the first time in its history. Speaking to local media recently, Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Permanent Secretary Dr John Basera said: “This year we are expecting 380 000 tonnes from 79 000 hectares of winter wheat, so this implies that there is a surplus this year. This is an amazing harvest.
There was a great improvement in load shedding and uninterrupted water supply.
“In 2020, we managed to do 45 000 hectares, a rise from where we were in the past. In 2021, we did 66 000 hectares.”
Prof Ncube said his and the Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Ministries were working on logistics increase wheat production to about 420 000 tons next season, giving the country room to keep building its strategic reserve and become an exporter of the grain.
“It is the Second Republic’s hope that next season we are able to produce about 420 000 tons of wheat. With this much we can increase our national stocks and perhaps eventually have the cereal is a forex earner,” said Prof Ncube.
Government has deployed more combine harvesters to help farmers speed up the harvest and is carrying out fire prevention awareness programmes.
The country’s environmental management agency has described bush fires as one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time. @RealSimbaJemwa
Online Reporter