The Sunday News
Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
FARMERS have been urged to stick to set timelines, particularly early digging of planting holes for Pfumvudza/Intwasa plots ahead of this year’s farming season.
The Pfumvudza/Intwasa model is aimed at climate-proofing agriculture by adopting conservation farming techniques and involves use of small plots and applying the correct agronomic practices for higher returns.
The programme, designed mainly for small-scale farmers, is benefitting households in the communal, A1, small-scale commercial farming and old resettlement sectors.
sorghum
Speaking during the Matobo District agricultural show on Wednesday, the chief director responsible for Agriculture Advisory Services in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Professor Obert Jiri said farmers should do early digging of planting holes.
“The Government’s climate proof Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme has proved to be a game changer in the country’s agriculture revival strategy in the face of recurrent droughts. More families across the country have food security after adopting the Government driven concept.
“This season, the programme will support five plots (measuring 39 metres x 16 metres, which is equal to 0,0624 ha) per household. Success of the conservation agriculture programme would be anchored on sticking to set timelines, particularly early digging of planting holes,” said Prof Jiri.
He revealed this as he commended the demo Pfumvudza/Intwasa plots at Matobo District Agricultural Centre of Excellence (DACE) and said farmers should utilise what they are taught at the centre.
Prof Jiri said more than 3 million households are being targeted for support under the Pfumvudza/Intwasa scheme after the Government released $20 billion as part of early preparations for the 2022-2023 summer cropping season.
Under the programme, the Prof Jiri said each farming household will get specific input packages as per their ecological farming region, with the input packages comprising of maize, sorghum, pearl millet, soyabeans, sunflower, groundnuts, vegetables and African peas.
Professor Obert Jiri views some of the products being exhibited at the Matobo District Agricultural Show
The packages will include water retention enhancers, herbicides for three plots and fall armyworm control.
Prof Jiri added: “As farmers take advantage of the farmer field schools as this is where each Agritex officer will lead practice. In the past we had Agritex officers as extensionists and trainers. Now, we have changed our whole extension system from Agricultural Extension 2.0 for extension and training to agricultural education for development to include entrepreneurship, innovation, research and development.”
He commended Matobo farmers saying witnessing from their exhibited crops and value-added products, rural development was also facilitating the attainment of Vision 2030.
To revamp the face of agriculture, he said the Government initiated various programmes that include Presidential Livestock Scheme, Presidential Rural Poultry and Goat Pass-On scheme, Presidential Blitz Tick Grease Scheme and Presidential Borehole Drilling Scheme among others meant to empower rural families.
Matabeleland South provincial agricultural officer Mr Mkhunjulelwa Ndlovu said the Matobo District agricultural show that ran under the theme: “Revamping the face of agriculture for food security and economic sustainability”, was testament to extra effort farmers were putting in for crop production.
sunflower
He said the show provided a platform for farmers to share ideas, gather knowledge and learn new techniques they can use in their farming activities.
Matobo Agricultural Society chairperson Ms Bulisiwe Mlotshwa who is also an Agritex officer said they were cascading the new technologies from the research to the farmers.
“We are a bridge between the research and the farmers, our aim to revamp the face of agriculture. As witnessed from the products being showcased here at this agricultural show, agriculture is the road to prosperity. Farmers are taking farming as a business, a development that will see Zimbabwe emerge as a prosperous, empowered and diversified upper middle-income society by 2023,” she said.
Farmers from different parts of Matobo showcased various crops and some of the value-added products, with schools also exhibiting confectioneries made from traditional grains.
The Government had initially planned to grow the agriculture sector to US$8,2 billion by 2025 through the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy (AFSTS) launched by President Mnangagwa in 2020, but the target had already been achieved by last year. It has since been revised to US$10 billion for the same period.
