The Sunday Mail
Theseus Shambare
CLOSE to one million climate-proofed Pfumvudza/Intwasa plots have been prepared countrywide, as farmers ramp up land preparations ahead of the 2023-2024 summer cropping season.
Meteorological experts forecast El Niño-induced normal to below-normal rains this year.
The Government is targeting 3,5 million smallholder farmers, with at least three million hectares expected to be put under crops to ensure the country is food-secure at household level. To date, 3 350 hectares (ha) have been limed, while 25 891ha have been mulched. Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Permanent Secretary Professor Obert Jiri said land preparations were proceeding smoothly.
“Farmers are currently busy making preparations. Holing and mulching are ongoing countrywide. We have not yet updated our statistics but we believe farmers must have surpassed one million plots now,” he said.
“Our advice is, those farmers who want to benefit from the scheme need to follow the tenets of Pfumvudza/Intwasa methods, thus, gathering mulch, holing out and registering with our extension workers deployed in every ward.”
This year, Prof Jiri said, the main focus is on increased production per unit area in light of possible below-normal rains.
“Good agronomic practices have been our theme for this season as we continue on our Going4Growth trajectory, output-wise. Online registration of farmers under the scheme is still ongoing until the season starts and the last beneficiary of the 3,5 million is registered,” he said.
Input distribution is also ongoing.
Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Minister Dr Anxious Masuka recently said input distribution is being monitored through a digital platform.
“To curb abuse of inputs, we have introduced a new system to capture distribution through a foolproof digital platform. As we move with time, our ministry is going paperless through the use of an application, with beneficiaries signing on the App. There will be no physical papers involved, which are prone to be tampered with by unscrupulous individuals,” he said.
A ward-based committee composed of local councillors; an appointee of the local chief; an Agricultural Advisory and Rural Development Services (AARDS) officer; disabled, youth and women’s representatives; as well as a local school headmaster; will oversee distribution of inputs.
Government assured farmers that there is enough seed and basal fertiliser for the 2023-2024 season.
It has also facilitated duty-free imports of top-dressing fertilisers by local companies to cover supply gaps.
The seed will be distributed based on agro-ecological regions, with those in dryer regions being given drought-tolerant seed.
Farmers who spoke to The Sunday Mail said they hope the Pfumvudza farming method will help mitigate the effects of El Niño.
“I am almost done with land preparations,” said Mrs Queen Majokwiro, a farmer from Chanhuwa village in Chimanimani, last week.
“I have completed digging holes of my Pfumvudza plots and have gone beyond the prescribed three plots and done seven. Currently, I am applying mulch from last year’s maize stalks . . .”
To further climate-proof her agriculture, she has since abandoned the use of synthetic fertilisers.
VSO project manager Mr Simba Guzha
“Through trainings and workshops we got from Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), a voluntary organisation and its implementing partner Towards Sustainable Use of Resources Organisation (TSURO) Trust, we have adapted agro-ecology for our Pfumvudza plots.
“We are now using naturally made manure . . .”
VSO programmes manager Mr Simba Guzha said they are complementing Government’s efforts in the Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme by imparting agro-ecology skills to farmers.
“Agro-ecology is a way of agriculture that involves the adoption of sustainable farming methods that increase yields while reducing environmental damage,” he said.
* X: @TheseusShambare
