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George Maponga in Masvingo
The US$60 million Chilonga lucerne grass project is on course with the Government continuing consultations with the local community to ensure overwhelming buy-in for the project.

This comes as the majority of the people in Chilonga, together with their traditional leaders, recently assured Vice President Constantino Chiwenga that they were backing the project.

VP Chiwenga visited the Lowveld and met some of the key stakeholders including traditional leaders and took time to dispel misconceptions about the project.

Government has indicated that the grass project will straddle about 6 000hectares and assured concerned villagers that no one would be moved off their ancestral land with only reorganisation of homesteads billed to take place.

This came after some civil society organisations and political opportunists tried to influence the Chilonga folk to resist the project on the grounds that they would be moved off their land to pave way for lucerne grass growing.

The Chilonga community then asked Government to clear the air on the project prompting VP Chiwenga to visit the Lowveld and meet key stakeholders.

Chiredzi acting District Development Coordinator Mr Gift Machukele yesterday said consultations were still ongoing to make sure there was full understanding of the implications of the grass project by Kwekwe-based milk processor Dendairy.

Mr Machukele expressed optimism that nothing would stand in the way of the project.

“We are consulting the Chilonga community and consultations are still ongoing despite the fact that the majority of people now understand what this project is all about.

“Its normal to have residual pockets of resistance but we continue to engage and I can safely say that where we are now, nothing is going to stop the project,”said Mr Machukele.

He said Chilonga has already started reaping fruits of the anticipated agricultural revolution in the area with completion of phase one of Chilonga Irrigation Scheme rehabilitation programme.

The scheme was revived last year having collapsed in 2007 after Runde River changed its course because of siltation and about 160ha are now irrigable.

Government intends to further expand the irrigation scheme to cover 2 000ha and become the food source of northern Chikombedzi. Besides grass production, a railway line linking Chilonga to the Nandi-Sango line will be built to export lucerne.

A factory processing the grass will also be built in the area, creating jobs.

Chiredzi Rural District Council chief executive Mr Ailess Baloyi said the local authority would take the issue of the grass project back to full council for an enabling resolution.

This he said was made possible by the new found buy in of the grass project by most stakeholders, including the local community.

Chilonga grass project falls within the ambit of a planned mega irrigation development drive by Government targeting the Lowveld areas such as Chikombedzi and Matibi 2 where Tugwi-Mukosi Dam and the planned Runde-Tende Dam will supply water.