THE Government remains committed to safeguarding the country’s agricultural sector from climate change, global conflicts and Covid-19 effects through strategically tailored programmes to keep the primary production sector afloat as per the Malabo declaration.
“As per the Malabo declaration we signed that we will target six percent agricultural growth per annum and we will allocate 10 percent of our budget to agricultural finance and anything on agricultural, therefore this conference is a review of how we have progressed both as a country and as a continent,” Deputy Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Vangelis Haritatos said this during the 2022 Annual Regional Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System (ReSAKSS) conference in Harare yesterday.
The Government, as a signatory to the Malabo declaration of 2014 on accelerated agricultural growth and transformation for shared prosperity and improved livelihoods has facilitated the growth of agriculture in the country.
Dep Min Haritatos said the agriculture sector was faced with the hostile three Cs, which are climate change, conflict and Covid-19 with climate change threatening food security due to disruptions in productivity.
The Government persists on facilitating agricultural development by rolling out the National Enhanced Agricultural Productivity Scheme (NEAPS) and the Presidential Input Scheme Pfumvudza/Intwasa – two flagship programmes that are key in addressing food self-sufficiency at both household level whilst ensuring commercial viability of agro processors through raw material provision.
NEAPS the commercially oriented contract farming programme is targeting 250 000 hectares under maize to contribute to the desired three million tonnes and over 50 000ha under sorghum and small grain production.
The Government is set to support 3, 5 million households this time around, up from last season’s 2, 5 million as part of efforts to capacitate the small-scale farmers. The standard input package will comprise basal and top dressing fertiliser, seed and chemicals.
The country has since increased the hectarage under wheat to 78 000 ha from 66 000 ha last season to achieve flour self-sufficiency. This will avert shortages courtesy of the conflict in Eastern Europe with Russia and Ukraine accounting for more than 30 percent of the world’s wheat supply.
The Government continues to improve agricultural productivity, as it pushes to attain food security, as well as produce for the export markets with the country targeting to reclaim its ‘bread basket of Africa’ status.
“We are excited to receive the progress report that will tell us what we need to do better and as the Ministry of Lands, Agricultural, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development we are very happy to make the changes and improvements that are to be presented in the report. – The Herald
