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Cletus Mushanawani Mash Central Bureau
A private company, New Basic Investment, has lined up a $38,6 million sugarcane plantation and milling plant for Mbire District that is expected to create 177 permanent and 300 contract jobs.

Mashonaland Central provincial administrator Mr Cosmas Chiringa and Mbire Rural District Council (RDC) chief executive Mr Claudius Majaya confirmed the development, which is widely expected to benefit one of the poorest districts in the country.

Mbire RDC has since applied to the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing for the allocation of 15 000 hectares of arable land to the firm.

The local authority recently wrote a letter to the provincial administrator detailing the proposed investment.

“Mbire Rural District Council was approached by New Basic Investments to provide 15 000 hectares of land for a sugarcane plantation. The sugarcane plantation shall be used by the firm to feed into a sugarcane plant earmarked to produce 18 000 tonnes annually,” said Mr Majaya in a letter to Mr Chiringa.

He added: “New Basic Investment is expected to inject into the project a total of US$38,57m. The project will create 177 permanent jobs and resultant downstream jobs of more than 300 contract workers.

“This will inject $1,27 million of income in the district through wages and salaries per annum. In addition, this will enhance social and economic benefits.”

Under the deal, a total of 200 farmers with 12-acre smallholder plots will be contracted as outgrowers.

Mr Majaya said New Basic Investment would provide irrigation infrastructure, as well as sugarcane inputs on a contract basis.

“The company intends to construct a mill close to the core farm that will be used to process the sugarcane from both the core farm and surrounding contracted farmers.

“This will also ensure improved payment of development levies by villagers in surrounding wards of two, three, nine, 12 and partly ward 17. This will also ensure the growth of Mushumbi through capacity utilisation of pegged stands, payment of licences and leases by the core farm and the mill.”

He said the area set aside for the project was initially earmarked for a conservancy, but the project was abandoned due to a shortage of animals.

“There are large volumes of water flowing in Hunyani River, which can be used to irrigate the sugarcane plantation.

“Water can be drawn from dams that are along Hunyani River as there is currently underutilisation of the dams upstream.

“These include Biri, Darwendale, Mazvikadei and Chivero dams.

“The project, if implemented, will attract other investments in the district like banking halls, proper service stations, lodges and infrastructure development. This will also increase capacity utilisation of infrastructure in the district that is currently idle due to lack of investment, resulting in poor circulation of money as many shops are closed,” said Mr Majaya.

In turn, Mr Chiringa said the district was ideal for agriculture-related projects.

“Mbire is regarded as one of the poorest districts in the country, but it has favourable climatic conditions ideal for plantations like sugarcane and cotton. The area has perennial rivers that are a major source for irrigation water.

“The district is just ideal for agriculture related projects.

“We must all support such kind of projects that can change the economic fortunes, not of that particular district, but the country at large,” he said.

He, however, called for an improvement of the province’s road network, which he said was driving away potential investors.