Zimpapers Logo

Business Reporter

CBZ Agro Yield plans to extend financial support towards the development of irrigation infrastructure critical to counter the effects of recurrent droughts caused by climate change, an official said.

“We are going to be financing that, including your equipment,” CBZ Agro Yield chief operating officer Mr Simbarashe Mhungu said. “This is something we never used to do before. (We previously) did it piecemeal.”

CBZ Agro-Yield is a subsidiary of CBZ Holdings.

It aims is to actively participate in assisting the Government to meet its agricultural objectives by empowering farmers, creating employment and increasing food production.

The company works with various stakeholders to ensure farmer yields continuously improve through enhanced methods such as farm mechanisation.

Mr Mungu said irrigation infrastructure would enable farmers to achieve higher yields while shielding them from the high costs of insuring their crops against the devastating effects of climate change.

“We all know that drought insurance in Zimbabwe is very difficult to get. It is priced quite steeply. So as Agro-Yield, we are looking (at) financing your irrigation infrastructure,” he said.

Zimbabwe has been hit hard by drought caused by El Nino weather and nearly half of its population will need food assistance this year.

The country, like many African nations, is grappling with the increasingly unpredictable and erratic weather patterns brought on by climate change.

Recurrent droughts have become a norm, wreaking havoc on agriculture, the backbone of the economy.

Analysts say to mitigate the devastating impacts of these droughts and ensure food security, the adoption of irrigation systems is paramount.

Irrigation offers a lifeline to farmers by providing a controlled water supply, shielding crops from the whims of the weather.

By supplementing rainfall, irrigation enables farmers to cultivate high-value crops, increase yields, and reduce the risk of crop failure.

Moreover, it extends the growing season, allowing for multiple cropping cycles per year and boosting agricultural productivity.

Investing in irrigation infrastructure is not merely a short-term solution but a strategic move towards building resilience to climate change.

It is a critical step in safeguarding the livelihoods of millions of people who depend on agriculture for their sustenance and income.

The Government has outlined an ambitious plan to expand irrigation infrastructure to mitigate the impacts of climate change and bolster food security.

The country aims to increase the area under irrigation to 350 000 hectares by 2027, up from the current 75 000 hectares.

The expansion is a key component of the Government’s strategy to achieve a strategic grain reserve of 1,5 million tonnes by 2028. By boosting irrigation, Zimbabwe seeks to reduce its reliance on rain-fed agriculture, which has been increasingly unreliable due to erratic rainfall patterns.

Zimbabwe has about 8 000 dams, with nearly 1 000 constructed by the Government.

Most of the privately owned dams are small.

To date, 48 000 hectares of irrigation infrastructure have been developed since 2020, falling short of the targeted 110 000 hectares.

Nevertheless, the Government is pressing ahead with plans to add 15 000 hectares before the start of the 2024/2025 summer season.