The Sunday News
Sharon Chimenya, Masvingo Correspondent
LIVESTOCK production in Masvingo province and its value chain is set to grow remarkably as a result of the development of pastures and the introduction of the lucerne grass set to be grown in Chiredzi South under irrigation.
The project is expected to improve the quality of beef in the country and for export market which also means an improvement in the livelihood of the framers and is a pointer to the country’s commitment to the achievement of vision 2030 whose import is of having an upper middle-class economy.
The vision is to identify and make use of the potential in each province to sustain livelihoods in line with the country’s devolution agenda.
The economy of the Masvingo province is hinged on both crop and livestock production where in crop agriculture the province boasts of having the biggest water bodies in the country in Tokwe-Mukosi and Mtirikwi Dams and its maximum potential is yet to be unlocked.
Investors in the lucerne project have committed to a demonstration of 200 hectares irrigated land to out growers on Chilonga 2 in the first phase.
Lucerne is a legume which carries a crude protein content of between 18 to 25 percent and is suitable as a finisher in pen fattening.
Once planted, harvesting can commence from 70 to 90 days to continue on the same vein in 28-day cycles for 4 to 5 years. Annual yields can go up to 24 metric tonnes.
Spurred by the national vision of an upper middle-income economy by 2030 and rural development, the change from communal to commercial hubs will help transform the lives of people in the rural areas.
According to the presentation document of the Chilonga Lucerne Project by Dendairy, the livestock sector growth can only be guaranteed through green pasture development programme and the lucerne production will positively impact a sector that is already pivotal to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“A vibrant economic blueprint the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) is in motion and vision 2030 is the collective destination.
The livestock growth plan (2020-2025) launched by the Government envisages a US$8,2 billion agriculture economy by 2025, with livestock accounting for US$1,9 billion of that economy.
“Success partly hinges on achieving massive irrigation targets of up to 60 000 for Masvingo, 350 000 for the whole country.
Between 2015 and 2021 over US$60 million of potential revenue was lost in Zimbabwe in form of 150 000 herd of cattle due to poor nutrition,” reads part of the presentation.
During a stakeholders’ engagement presentation to the media last week, the Dendairy Lucerne Project public relations officer Ms Lilian Muungani said that the social investment is a transformed community vision whose efforts in agriculture may not continue to be wasted in dry land farming.
“Chilonga and Masivamela communities experience severe herd decimations due to climate change induced droughts. Localised lucerne production will positively impact the communal livestock sector. Every fourth year the lucerne crop will be rotated with cotton for repairs to the soil.
In addition to the lint for the clothing industry, the cotton will also have a positive ripple effect on the livestock and dairy sectors in particular through the provision of cotton seed meal and cake, the chief source of protein for ruminant diets.
“The overall project vision is to set up multiple lucerne producing hubs throughout Zimbabwe for export markets and to compliment the national herd revival efforts being implemented in the context of NDS1.
The investment blueprint includes the construction of a regional fodder bank around Chilonga and Masivamele to strengthen stock feed supplies and ultimately drive the Lowveld livestock sector into positive performance,” said Ms Muungani.
Masvingo has a livestock population of over 1 million for cattle and 650 000 for goats and with the irrigation development, the province is poised for growth.
The company is in the process of engaging the community leadership and stakeholders with the major factor underlined being that the investment will not warrant relocations of the people but rather the project model carries with it a vibrant out grower component.
The existing farmers will receive all the necessary inputs, technical guidance, equipment and water on a cost recovery basis for sustainability.
She said that the programme represents a massive transformation of rural agriculture, from heavily unreliable rain fed subsistence farming to highly commercial, equipment intensive commercial irrigation agronomy.
“The current community engagement programme will also facilitate commencement of trials through an initial 200-hecatare lucerne irrigation field for demonstration purposes. The demonstration phase requires that farmers are selected by the communities themselves, to produce lucerne as out growers under irrigation conditions,” she added.
As livestock production plays an important role in the social, cultural and economic environment of Zimbabwe, the NDS1 will prioritise animal health and production through strengthening farmer knowledge, skills in livestock production and health so as to enhance productivity.
According to the 2020-21 Crop and Livestock Assessment a total of 10 183 cattle succumbed to drought in 2020 as compared to 66 088 cattle in 2019. The reduction in cattle deaths was due to the Government and farmers improving pasture production and provision of subsidized commercial feeds.
