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Midlands Bureau Chief
MIDLANDS Province recorded a 20 percent increase in the area planted under maize in the 2022/23 agricultural season as the appetite for farming the crop remains high among farmers.

The Second Republic has made food security a top priority and is working towards an US$8,2 billion agriculture industry economy, contributing 20 percent of the Gross Domestic Product by 2025.

This is underpinned by the country’s National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) – the driver towards Vision 2030, to make Zimbabwe an upper middle-income economy.

In an interview yesterday, Midlands Provincial Director, Agriculture and Rural Development, Mrs Madeline Magwenzi said the maize area planted increased from 391 945 hectares to 469 408 hectares.

“The Midlands province recorded a 20 percent increase in the maize area planted for the 2022/23 agricultural season as appetite for farming the crop is increasing among farmers. The maize area planted increased from 391 945ha to 469 408ha,” she said.

Mrs Magwenzi said Gokwe North and South, Mberengwa and Mvuma recorded a surge in the land put under maize.

She said crops in most districts across the province are looking good.

“Gokwe North, South, Kwekwe, Gweru, and Mvuma have a fair to good crop. The excelling one is under the Pfumvudza/Intwasa concept because it survived the dry spell through mulch. Farmers in the Midlands province who put their crop under the Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme are optimistic about recording good harvests during the 2022/2023 cropping season because their crops were not affected by the dry spell,” said Mrs Magwenzi.

According to the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Crop, Livestock and Fisheries Assessment Report (Pre-harvest) CLAFA-1 2022/23 Summer Season the national area planted for maize increased slightly by three percent from 1 903 668ha in the 2021/22 season to 1 962 575ha in 2022/23.

Of the 1 962 575ha under maize, 49 percent had been planted by end of November 2022, 42 percent was planted in December 2022 and nine percent was planted in January 2023.

The highest area ever planted for maize was 2 096 034ha achieved in the 2010/2011 season.

The communal sector however, contributed the largest area under maize (62 percent), while the large scale and A2 contributed eight percent of the area under maize, which is a two percent decrease from 10 percent in the 2021/22 season.

The Presidential Input Scheme targeted vulnerable smallholder farmers under the Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme, while the National Enhanced Agriculture Productivity Scheme (NEAPS) provided support for large-scale farmers.

“The area planted for maize under Pfumvudza currently stands at 247 265 ha against the summer plan target of 367 924 ha,” reads part of the report.

A total of 1 979 farmers benefited from forage input packs under the Presidential Silage programme for the smallholder dairy farming sector.

The report noted that the area under sorghum decreased by seven percent with a notable decrease in Mashonaland West and Mashonaland Central provinces, traditionally maize growing areas with favourable rainfall. The sorghum area under Pfumvudza/Intwasa increased from 10 835 ha to 13 627ha.

“Inputs supply for the 2022/2023 agricultural season was anchored on four major programmes namely the Presidential Input Support Scheme, National Enhanced Agricultural Productivity Scheme, contract farming schemes by private sector agro-value chain players and self-financing,” reads the report.

According to the report, fall armyworm attack on maize and other cereal crops remained a major challenge during the season.

“The pest affected all provinces and fall armyworm infestation levels increased during dry conditions across the country after occurrence of incessant rains. There were also incidences of grasshopper infestations. No locust outbreaks were reported,” reads part of the report.

The number of village nutrition gardens stands at 7 091, covering an area of 6 277,8ha, with 80 percent of the gardens being functional and an area of 5 022 ha under production.

Meanwhile, the national beef cattle herd grew by two percent from 5 509 983 in 2021 to 5 642 400 in 2022.The national dairy herd increased by 11,.3 percent from 47 825 to 53 250 while the milking herd grew to 35 100 cows in 2022 from 31 524 in 2021.

A total of 4 149 goats were distributed to farmers in various provinces under the Presidential Goat Scheme while a total of 422 950 four-week-old indigenous chicks were also distributed under the Presidential Rural Poultry Scheme.

On fisheries and aquaculture production, kapenta production increased from 5 333 tonnes in 2020 to 5 950 in 2021.

The total number of fish ponds increased by 29 percent from 5 634 in 2022 to 7 247 fishponds in 2023. -@pchitumba1