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Patrick Chitumba, [email protected] 

Minister of State for Midlands Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Owen Ncube, has announced Government plans   to set up a cotton value chain industrial park in Gokwe. 

A cotton value chain industrial park is a designated area that hosts various businesses and facilities involved in the processing, manufacturing and transformation of cotton into different products. 

It is a hub that brings together various stages of the cotton value chain, including ginning, a process of separating fibres from the seeds. 

It also involves spinning where cotton is converted into yarn, weaving or knitting.

Yarn is then transformed into fabric or textile manufacturing. The fabric is used to produce clothes bedding or other such products. 

Minister Ncube said the industrial park will enhance the value of cotton by processing it into various products thereby boosting the local economy which then benefits farmers in the region.

“There are plans to establish a cotton value chain industrial park in Gokwe to avoid moving cotton in its raw form to other cities and towns. 

“The Gokwe industrial park will likely focus on processing and adding value to the cotton to benefit the provincial economy,” he said.

Minister Ncube said in line with the Second Republic’s goals of value addition and import substitution, the Midlands Province is also setting up an oil-pressing plant in Gokwe. 

He said the plant will utilise cotton seeds as its primary raw material.

“This initiative aligns with the Government’s strategy to increase economic self-sufficiency and drive industrial growth. Guided by the Second Republic’s development trajectory of value addition and import substitution strategy to reduce dependence on primary commodities, the province is   also establishing an oil-pressing plant in Gokwe,” said Minister Ncube. 

Cotton is a major source of livelihood for approximately two million people across the country.

Last year, the country produced about 90 000 tonnes of cotton, primarily cultivated by small-scale farmers participating in the Government’s climate-proof Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme.

The Pfumvudza/ Intwasa programme is expected to revive the production of cotton after the same concept reaped huge results in maize and traditional crops.

Besides the cotton value chain industrial park, Minister Ncube said a lithium beneficiation plant will be set up in Mberengwa at Sandawana Mine with long-term prospects for lithium battery manufacturing in the province.

“Guided by the mantra of leaving no one and no place behind, the Second Republic is working on rural industrialisation drive through these initiatives. 

“At the same time, the devolution funds have been disbursed to local authorities and visible infrastructure projects, including schools, clinics, roads and equipment like fire tenders, refuse collection trucks, and borehole drilling equipment have been procured,” he said. 

 

Synonyms for “Cotton”swabtissueq-tipcloththreadwoolfleece