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Heather Charema in Kadoma
Cotton farmers in Mashonaland West Province are hopeful that they would get better yields after some of the cotton-growing areas received mid-season rains. Government, through the Presidential Input Support Scheme, has been providing free cotton inputs to farmers to revive an industry that was on the verge of collapse.

Zimbabwe has potential to produce 600 000 tonnes of cotton per annum.
Sanyati, Makonde and Hurungwe districts are some of the major cotton-growing districts in the province.
Mr Francis Mutoti, a cotton farmer in Makonde, said the dry spell had affected the cotton crop to a lesser extent.

“The dry spell had affected my crop partly, but it was not really bad. If the rains persist, I am guaranteed of a better yield than last season. A number of farmers had resorted to grain crops after a bumper harvest last year, but most of them are now regretting,” he said.

Mrs Gracia Tanyanyiwa, another cotton farmer in Sanyati, said more rains would revive the cotton crop in the district.
“My cotton crop had been affected at the beginning of the dry spell, but it survived the scotching heat. Now that in the district most parts have not received the rains, we all hope for better yields in the province,” she said.
Sanyati district Agritex officer Mrs Evelyn Ndoro said though the recent dry spell had increased acidity levels, the latest rains had normalised the situation.

“The cotton crop had not been affected much in the district. The acid levels had also risen due to the dry spell, now they have normalised,” she said. Sanyati District, she said, had doubled the hectarage under the crop from last year.

“Sanyati District has about 10 000 hectares of cotton, which means a doubled area compared to last year’s hectarage,” she said.
Mashonaland West provincial Agritex officer Mrs Edna Shambare said there was need for more rains in the province.