New lease of life for Cashel Valley Irrigation Scheme

VILLAGERS in districts across the country are set to benefit from various training programmes to be undertaken by the District Development Fund as part of the Government’s devolution process.

The training programmes will seek to equip people at local level with road and borehole maintenance skills and accounting lessons.

DDF will also establish water committees at village levels which will monitor infrastructure in their respective areas.

The Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President and Cabinet responsible for the District Development Fund and related infrastructure development, Mr Kenneth Jonga, said this last Thursday during the commissioning of Cashel Valley Irrigation Scheme in Chimanimani

Mr Jonga was representing Minister of State in Vice President Kembo Mohadi’s office, Mr Davis Marapira, who was the guest of honour at the event.

“After we are satisfied with development of Cashel Valley we will hand over the scheme to the Minister of State for Manicaland,” he said.

“Through the devolution programme that requires decentralisation of economic activities, we will be holding training programmes in villages where people will be equipped with maintenance of boreholes and roads skills. There is going to be establishment of base camps in districts for the training,” he said.

Mr Jonga said there were about 194 trainers across the country to undertake the training.

Cashel Valley Irrigation Scheme is expected to benefit 386 families under the 381 hectares which lies on irrigable land.

The scheme, which was operating at under 30 percent capacity, was revived under the National Accelerated Irrigation Rehabilitation Programme, which is being administered by DDF.

Mr Jonga challenged beneficiaries in Cashel Valley to fully utilise the land saying the objective of revamping the schemes was to ensure food security.

“In order to bring back the Cashel Valley brand beans, negotiations are currently underway with Cains Foods Limited to offer the beneficiaries contract farming inputs,” he said.

“The beneficiaries are also expected to benefit from the Command Agricultural inputs to facilitate reopening of the Cashel Valley. DDF responded well to a plea from the Chimanimani community to revive the irrigation scheme in order to bring back economic activities in the valley and restore the area’s past glory,” he said.

Cashel Valley Irrigation Scheme, which is ranked amongst the biggest in the country, has been operation at below capacity over the past years.

According to Mr Jonga, DDF is expecting to develop 2 000ha of irrigable land in each province with 1 350ha already having been completed across the country.

“There are 35 selected irrigation schemes which are set to be revived throughout the country. The aim is to bring food security in the country,” he said.

Manicaland Provincial Affairs Minister Dr Ellen Gwaradzimba appealed to companies which operated in Cashel Valley Irrigation Scheme in yesteryears to provide a market for the farmers’ products.

She said the irrigation scheme was a sleeping giant for years, and it’s revitalisation brings hope and economic activities to families surrounding the area.

“I know there might be market challenges for the produce, but I think there is need for organisation and mobilisation so that produce reaches the market. We do not want to see our produce rot in the fields,” she said.