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THE Government has commended the Smallholder Irrigation Revitalisation Programme (SIRP) for developing business models around irrigation schemes in a move that has enabled schemes to boost their production volumes.

Speaking during the commissioning of the Silobela Irrigation Scheme in Kwekwe recently, Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Minister Dr Anxious Masuka said the impact of the SIRP intervention was already being witnessed through increased production and profitability in irrigation schemes.

“The programme has perfected the idea of scheme business viability determining sustainability for continuous production,” said Dr Masuka stressing how the idea should be adopted by farmers.

SIRP has various initiatives, which cover training and implementation in areas of nutrition, natural resource management, gender and social inclusion, good agricultural practices, market access and financial literacy.

The development comes at a time the Government is working to transform irrigation schemes into both production hubs and centres of business excellence to accelerate the attainment of an upper-middle- income economy and rural development.

“Production and profitability anchor the Government’s vision of rural development and industrialisation,” said Dr Masuka.

In response to climate change SIRP has been rehabilitating irrigation schemes in the country so that farmers can produce all year around.

With the irrigation scheme revitalisation programme now in full swing, the Government is urging farmers to commercialise their operations to complement its efforts towards rural industrialisation.

“Commercialisation of irrigation schemes is a key component of the Government’s rural industrialisation thrust,” said Dr Masuka.

SIRP is supporting the training of Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (ARDA) scheme managers and extension workers on irrigation scheme business management to assist farmers to run farming businesses for profitability and ensure continuous production.

The Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development has been making forward strides towards transforming the agriculture sector in line with modern business practices.

SIRP is a seven year programme funded by International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) and the Government, which aims to promote resilience to weather vagaries in smallholder farming communities in Zimbabwe.

The thrust of the programme is to influence farmers to marry production and product marketing for profitability by establishing partnerships between them and value chain lead enterprises.