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Daniel Chigunwe Mashonaland Central Correspondent

As the veld fire season approaches, Muzarabani Rural District Council has embarked on hay bailing to reduce fuel load on grasslands after losing about 35 000 hectares of land to fire last year.

The council is targeting about 25 000 bales of hay, with Muzarabani district information officer Mr Godfrey Chireru saying the move provided a lucrative means for income generation for both the council and vulnerable women in the community.

“Having identified the source regions of veld fires, council is harvesting the cynodon grass species which is of a high nutritional value, which is then made into hay bales for pen feeding as well as selling to livestock farmers with each costing US$2,” he said.

“Twenty hectares of land have so far been used to produce 3 000 bales in areas that do not have the cynodon grass. Vulnerable women such as widows are harvesting thatch grass employing traditional methods of fireguard as well as for profit.”

The Dande Valley community’s local economy is hinged on livestock production.

Besides raising income for both residents and the council, hay baling is a key milestone in supporting the Presidential Command Livestock Programme, especially in Muzarabani where many farmers rely on livestock farming.