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Dr Made

Elita Chikwati Senior Reporter
The $300 million livestock, fisheries and wildlife special production programme (Command Livestock), recently approved by Cabinet, is expected to boost land utilisation and influence the crop sector.

The programme is expected to benefit livestock farmers from all sectors including institutions such as churches, prisons and police farms. The programme will also result in the establishment of the Foot and Mouth Fence, dip tanks, watering points and livestock farming infrastructure such as paddocks and shelter for livestock.

Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Dr Joseph Made, yesterday said the programme would have the greatest economic impact by boosting crop production for stockfeeds, resuscitating the leather industry, production of tallow for soap and bone and blood meal which were currently being imported.

“The programme will benefit input suppliers and enhance employment creation across the country. There are economic activities to be generated in all farming sectors and institutional farms. We are looking forward to entering European markets in terms of beef quota.

“We want to present an opportunity where certain land not suitable for cropping can be reserved for protecting the environment. This is the genesis of proper land use. Even within the farms, we should see classical paddocks and water systems,” he said.

Dr Made said the programme would enable the country to work with other countries such as Russia, China and India. “We have a mutual relationship with Russia because it does not accept GMO material. “This programme is going to cover all aspects of livestock plus the fisheries and wildlife in the sense of national parks as well as wildlife being farmed; kudu, bucks and deer among others.

“The Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate, will be working on a day to day basis on this broad programme. The Ministry of Agriculture will be dealing with beef cattle, dairy cattle, piggery, sheep, goats and small poultry both broilers, layers, guinea fowls, indigenous chickens and rabbits and any other form of stock that a farmer will choose,” he said.

Dr Made warned people against misleading farmers and said announcements on the programme would only be done by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Committee on Food Security and Nutrition. “Various boards will also be established to enable us to have value chain approach. We will also work with farmers unions. We will not accept people challenging authorities and other marketing boards,” he said.

He said the Ministry of Information Communication Technology and Courier Services and Ministry of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services would also be roped in. “We are looking forward to digitisation programme and print media to play a big role in communicating techniques; the know how, how to do things. There will also be extension and training centres across the country,

“Currently technical teams on Command Agriculture will elaborate the work and look at various technical strategies. I am grateful to His Excellency President Mugabe for considering the programme and speedily giving us the go ahead.

“There is no doubt the programme will surpass all others sectors in terms of the growth of economy, social and political activities. “Already machinery coming from Brazil now include equipment related to livestock; grass cutting material and balers,” he said. He said the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education would also be part of the programme because universities would work together with industry to develop techniques.

The Livestock, Fisheries and Wildlife Special Production Programme comes after the Special Maize programme for Import Substitution which is the brain child of First Lady Amai Grace Mugabe and supervised by Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

The livestock programme is expected to run up to five years.