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Business Reporter
Government should show commitment in clearing about $40 million in arrears owed to the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in order to receive funding from the institution.

IFAD Regional Director East and Southern Africa Division Mr Sana Jatta yesterday told journalists that Zimbabwe had shown commitment towards re-engagement and should work towards clearing its arrears in order to receive fresh funding.

“When I took over my job in April this year my objective was to re-engage with Zimbabwe considering the potential that the country has in terms of resources and infrastructure.

“I am pleased by the commitment being shown by the Government on re-engagement and this shows that they mean business,” said Mr Jatta.

IFAD is a specialised agency of the United Nations which was established as an international financial institution in 1977. The financial institution, has since its inception, focused exclusively on rural poverty reduction, working with poor rural populations in developing countries to eliminate poverty, hunger and malnutrition; raise their productivity and incomes; and improve the quality of their lives.

He said the institution is committed to supporting Zimbabwe smallholder farmers and irrigation schemes.

Mr Jatta said it is critical that small- holder farmers be empowered and be given linkages to global markets.

“Smallholder farmers can be as equally important to the economy as anyone,” said Mr Jatta.

IFAD has over the years designed and implemented projects in different natural, socio-economic and cultural environments. Many IFAD-supported projects and programmes have been in remote areas, and have targeted some of the poorest and most deprived segments of the rural population.

Mr Jatta said the fund recognised that vulnerable groups can contribute to economic growth and these groups have shown that they can join the mainstream of social and economic development, provided the causes of their poverty are understood and enabling conditions for development are created.

Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Joseph Made said Zimbabwe is endowed with a lot of viable irrigation projects which require funding.

He said such engagement is key to the revival of the agricultural sector considering that smallholder farmers used to play a significant role in the nation’s past harvests.

“At this moment we have major dams that have been constructed particularly Tokwe-Mukosi, which has the biggest area that should be irrigated in Matibi 1 and Matibi 2 communal irrigation schemes.

“So we are pleased with this development and I am looking foward to the technical mission that will come other than the mission that has been dealing with financial issues,” said Minister Made. This re-engagement would be critical in terms of developing new irrigation schemes.”