Staff Writer
Deputy Minister of Agriculture Vangelis Haritatos says Zimbabwe has shifted its focus to wheat production, leveraging the country’s ability to grow wheat more efficiently than maize during the winter months.
He said the move is aimed at mitigating the impact of the El Niño-induced drought. The southern African nation reported a 77% decline in food crop production, underscoring the severity of the drought, leaving millions vulnerable to food shortages.
In response, Haritatos said the government has set a target of 120,000 hectares under wheat cultivation for the current season.
Speaking at the handover of the fertilizer donation from Japan, he said the country has already surpassed this goal with 121,345 hectares now under irrigation.
“To address the impact of the El Niño, government has adopted a wheat-based food security thrust, underpinned by the country’s comparative advantage to produce wheat over maize in winter,” he said.
“For the current season, government has set a target of 120,000 hectares under wheat production. This target was surpassed as a total of 121,345 hectares are under irrigation. This will contribute to the targeted production of 600,000 metric tonnes of wheat, which will go a long way in replenishing our strategic grain reserve and also augment supply for social welfare grain distribution to vulnerable households.”
Japan donated 3,860 metric tonnes of ammonium nitrate and 1 940 metric tonnes of Compound D fertilizer worth US$4.7 million.
Speaking at the handover event, the ambassador of Japan to Zimbabwe, Yamanaka Shinichi, said the fertilizer will benefit 100,000 small-scale farmers.
“The aim of this assistance is to support the livelihoods of small-scale farmers and to ensure national food security in Zimbabwe, especially at a time like this where the country is facing an El Niño-induced drought and higher prices of imported fertilizer amid the global economic turmoil because of the Eastern Europe conflict,” Shinichi said at the handover ceremony in the capital.
The fertilizer will be distributed to small-scale farmers benefitting from the government-subsidised Climate Proofed Input Programme, or Pfumvudza Intwasa.
“Through promoting conservation agriculture and providing inputs, this programme is helping farmers to not only grow enough food for their families but also to sell. With the right inputs and by adapting to climate change, the small-scale farmers will increase their production, thus improving their livelihoods and food security,” the ambassador said.
He highlighted that as a response to the El Niño-induced drought, the Japanese government has decided to provide further food assistance worth about US$1.4 million through the World Food Programme in August.
