The Sunday News
Dumisani Nsingo, Senior Farming Reporter
A GLIMMER of hope of improved food security and revenue generation is beckoning for most poverty-stricken members of Bona Irrigation Scheme, with full-throttle cropping activities at the agricultural enterprise in the drought-prone Bubi District set to start in February next year.
Matabeleland North Department of Irrigation provincial chief engineer Charles Makhula said most work at the new irrigation scheme had been done in preparation to start cropping activities with the only impingement being connection of electricity and installation of boreholes to be used for drawing water to irrigate the 100 hectare field.
At its initial stages the scheme was made up of 80 villagers drawn from Bona Village’s 10 wards. However, four of its members have since pulled out due to non-payment of subscriptions. According to the irrigation scheme’s constitution a member is supposed to contribute $4 a month towards payment of security personnel at the site and another $4 a day for absconding of which the four ousted members failed to oblige to.
The scheme’s members also paid a joining fee of $105, which was used to purchase equipment for land clearing purposes, $14 each for buying cement for the construction of a core unit house consisting of an office, resting room and a storeroom.
“We expect the two contractors to be on site within the next seven days. One of the contractors will be responsible for drilling boreholes while the other one will connect electricity, a distance of about two kilometres to the main line. We expect the issue of water and electricity to the irrigation scheme to be done in a month.
“Cropping is likely to start after two months upon the completion of the networking of boreholes and the lining of the night storage tank by Bubi Gold Mine which pledged to do the work and insisted that it will take about 14 days to complete.
However, it seems the company is facing financial challenges to honour its promise,” said Eng Makhula.
The irrigation scheme’s chairman, Mr Vote Ndlovu, said the project’s members had played their part and were waiting for the Department of Irrigation to complete its mandated work.
“We finished our part which was clearing the land and we were allocated some farming implements and machinery including a Centre Pivot Irrigation system through a Government programme.
“All that is left is to have electricity connected, an additional six boreholes installed and the construction of a night water storage tank as well as fencing the fields,” said Mr Ndlovu.
He said Bilboes Holdings Private Limited, which owns Bubi Gold Mine and operates within the confines of the irrigation scheme and had pledged to assist the farmers through purchasing a transformer to power pumps that would be used to draw water to the field, constructing a water storage tank and fencing off the land are now appearing to be dragging their feet.
“The mine had promised to erect a fence around the scheme as well as constructing a night water storage tank but up to now it is still to fulfill its pledge. However, for its part the mine installed three boreholes for us though the other one has collapsed.
“However, the district’s engineer from the Department of Irrigation said the issue was being looked into. We were even promised some inputs to participate under the Command Agriculture Programme, which means the remaining work is going to be expedited,” said Mr Ndlovu.
The irrigation scheme members started utilising one of the boreholes, which was installed by Bilboes Holdings in March after embarking on a one-hectare horticultural project. They started selling the produce namely tomatoes, rape and chomolia cropped on the piece of land in May and have since cropped cabbages on another portion of the one hectare garden.
“Through selling vegetables we have managed to pay wages of the four security personnel that safeguard the scheme. We have also managed to get substantial amounts to make improvements at our home.
“We are impatiently waiting to start full throttle production as this will enable us to improve our household food security. We anticipate putting the entire scheme under maize, which we will sell to the Grain Marketing Board,” said Mr Ndlovu.
@DNsingo
