‘Arda farms on the mend’

14 Jun, 2015 - 00:06 0 Views
‘Arda farms on the mend’ Estate Manager Mr Alec Chinyai shows off state-of-the art equipment and on the right in one of the wheat fields at Arda Antelope in Maphisa, Matabeleland South

The Sunday Mail

Estate Manager Mr Alec Chinyai shows off state-of-the art equipment and on the right in one of the wheat fields at Arda Antelope in Maphisa, Matabeleland South

Estate Manager Mr Alec Chinyai shows off state-of-the art equipment and on the right in one of the wheat fields at Arda Antelope in Maphisa, Matabeleland South

Following a partnership between Trek Farming and Agricultural and Rural Development Authority’s (Arda) Antelope Estate, the ailing estate seems to have already risen from the deathbed.

Antelope Estate is in Maphisa, Matabeleland South. The 3 000 hectare estate which has been lying idle since 2012 due to lack of capital is now the talk of the province as production has resumed after the private investor recapitalised it.

Government recently gave the green light for parastatals to engage in public/private partnerships. Zimbabwe can surely return to its bread basket status of Southern Africa if the model is adopted at all Arda farms.

When The Sunday Mail Extra visited the estate last week, there was a hive of activity as the employees happily carried out their duties after years of being jobless.

Estate manager Mr Alec Chinyai could not hide his joy either.

Narrating the estate history, Mr Chinyai said during all the years of non-production, his hope kept him going and therefore he remained on the estate.

And his instinct that Antelope was not dead was right, the once idle farmland has now turned green. The winter wheat crop has already been planted on more than 400 hectares. A yield of between seven and eight tonnes per hectare is expected.

“Together with about 45 employees, we did not move out of the estate so that we could protect the estate property from vandalism as has the case in most of our estates. This helped a lot, our infrastructure is still intact. This made it much easier for the investor to pour in his money,’’ he said.

Mr Chinyai said the coming in of Trek Farming couldn’t have come at a better time.

Trek Farming brought in state-of-the-art-equipment which includes 290-horse-power tractors, rom discs, chisel ploughs, vicons for seed and fertiliser spreading, boom sprays, fertilisers and seeds, among other things.

Arda, on the other hand, provided the land, the underground irrigation infrastructure, buildings as well as workforce.

This investment is on 51 /49 percent basis as per Government policy.

The 290-horse-power tractors are fuel efficient and only consume 10 litres of diesel per hectare, other models consume between 20 and 30 litres per hectare. These new tractors can also draw a rom disc of 53 dishes with a capacity of tilling 50 hectares per day.

The chisel ploughs cover eight meters in width with a capacity of tilling 60 hectares per day compared to the other models that has a single meter width and can till less than 10 hectares a day.

The boom sprays cover 24 meters in width with a 3 000 litre tank which is able to cover 15 hectares before re-filling. These boom sprays have the capacity to draw water from the water source and load the tank in less than ten minutes.

Not to be outdone, the fertiliser vicons are also in their own class as they can carry three tonnes at a goal. They can spread for a width of 24 meters.

The pivots can be programmed with all the relevant information by an operator off the fields.

“All this new machinery is less labour intensive and more productive,’’ he said.

“Now we are talking of more than 600 hectares under centre pivots after Trek installed 10 of them. Three more are to be added,’’ said a beaming Mr Chinyai.

A single centre pivot costs between $60 000 and $70 000.

He also pointed out that some programmes that had been at a standstill would be resumed soon. These include the rural development programme and the out-grower programme which targets to put 119 hectares under centre pivots for the out grower farmers.

Estate manager Mr Alec Chinyai in one of the wheat fields at Arda Antelope in Maphisa Matebeleland South.

Estate manager Mr Alec Chinyai in one of the wheat fields at Arda Antelope in Maphisa Matebeleland South.

After assisting farmers under the programme, Arda will also offer extension services. The farmers’ produce will then be marketed together with the estates’ produce.

Before things came to a halt, the estate was growing wheat, soya beans and cotton while employing more than 300 workers from the local community.

The revival of the estate is also expected to create employment for the local communities. Already a total of 150 workers have been employed.

Mr Chinyai said during this short operating period, the employees’ livelihoods had already improved.

He said most Arda estates are on the verge of collapse because of its reluctance to adapt to new technology.

“Our estates are lying idle because of failure to embrace technology. The traditional way of doing things is no longer relevant,’’ he said.

Mr Chinyai proudly pointed out that they had already revived their markets for the produce.

While there are still some minor issues to be attended to, the major one is that of irrigation water which is drawn from Antelope Dam.

He said the cost of water is too high, especially considering that other estates where being charged less.

“Zinwa is charging $14 per megalitre while Triangle is paying $8. They say that Triangle contributed in the construction of Mutirikwi Dam, hence the lower amount, but we still feel that $14 is too exorbitant,’’ he lamented.

The estate receives an average monthly water bill of $14 000 and the two parties are still engaged in negotiations to reduce the charges.

Power supply is also a hindrance, though less serious.

“With electricity we are better off as they always communicate to us when they shed and the time they will give us back power. But we are usually favoured considering that our crop is almost at booting stage where any irrigation cycle disturbance would result in low yields,’’ he said.

Some of the recently employed locals sang praises for the Government policy which allowed the partnership.

“I am happy to be employed, at least I now have an income. This province is drought-prone and hunger is a serious threat to us. Now I am able to buy food from my earnings,’’ said Norman Moyo.

Even shop owners at the nearby Maphisa Shopping Centre described the re-opening of the estate as a relief as this automatically boosted business for them.

“Night life no longer existed but night spots are now a hive of activity as people have cash to spend,’’ said one shop operator, Mr Kenneth Tshuma.

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