Staff writer

Irrigation has the potential to change the prospects of agriculture in Zimbabwe as the government aims to expand land under irrigation to 350,000 hectares through the Accelerated Irrigation Rehabilitation Development Plan.

This expansion comes as a response and as part of a broader efforts to climate-proof agriculture and improve food security in the country.

Speaking during an interview in Bulawayo recently Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Permanent Secretary Professor Obert Jiri highlighted that the agriculture industry is growing and there is need to transform it to be able to respond to current challenges.

“The agriculture industry In Zimbabwe is growing and we must transform it to be able to respond to current challenges particularly climate change, change in diets and consumption patterns.”

This transformation for it to be successful it calls for agriculture to be treated as a business from household level and pushes government to explore means of harnessing water and putting up irrigation schemes along main water bodies.

“In order to have food security, enough nutrition and to improve livelihoods we need to respond to these challenges at household level where we must climate proof and ensure that each household is empowered to be able to have agriculture as a business.

“At national level we must have full investments on irrigation that’s why we have put a special focus on irrigation and development ensuring that our water bodies are connected to the production points which utilises it,” he added.

Government is making sure that every dam project has a running irrigation scheme and where there is no dam but enough water for irrigation, boreholes are being sunk and water is harnessed so as to make sure that transformation and food security becomes not only a dream but reality.