Centres of Excellence improve farmers’ agricultural production
THE shift from subsistence farming to commercial farming for Matobo farmer, Mr Standich Moyo of Lushumbe Village has been a game changer, in the sprawling Matabeleland South province. Moving from growing crops and raising livestock sufficient only for one’s own use, without any surplus for trade, Mr Moyo has adopted producing substantial quantities of agricultural outputs, selling large proportions and making profits.
To realise his potential, Mr Moyo has had to attend various farmer-centric trainings and workshops that have taught him to go beyond production numbers. His agricultural strategy now encompasses a range of activities including input delivery, water management, infusion of technology and investment in rural infrastructure.
Utilising the agricultural centres of excellence, Mr Moyo has acquired the muchneeded technical skills and knowledge to value add his produce.
“Prior to the trainings, farming to me was to produce only that which is enough to feed me and my family without any surplus. At times what we would get wouldn’t even be enough. However, after attending trainings, workshops and field days, I’ve been able to shift my mindset and take farming as a business,” said Mr Moyo.
He said the key trainings and field days that have had significant impact on him were at Matopos Research Institute Agricultural Centre of Excellence (MACE) and Matobo District Agricultural Centres of Excellence.
These were developed by the Zimbabwe Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Services (Zakis) project which set up two national Agricultural Centres of Excellence (ACEs) and four District Agricultural Centres of Excellence (DACEs), in a bid to improve livelihoods as well as strengthen the food and nutrition security of the country.
The two national ACEs were established at Chibero Agricultural College and Matopos Research Institute, while the four DACEs were set-up in Matobo, Insiza, Mhondoro-Ngezi and Chegutu.
Zakis is part of a larger EU-funded Zimbabwe Agricultural Growth Programme (ZAGP) and the €40 million initiative seeks to boost beef, dairy, pig, goat and poultry production.
Working together with the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Zakis co-ordinates marketoriented education and extension services across the five value chains.
Mr Moyo who is into crops farming, livestock production and value addition said: “The agricultural centres of excellence demonstrate best practice in crop and livestock production. By so doing, as farmers we’re learning and adopting transformative agricultural methods that enhance our production, promote selfsustenance and ensure sustainability.”
In terms of other ventures, he said he established Nhali Honey Products where they value-add various products from honey such as pollen, beeswax and syrup among others.
Matobo District Agritex Extension Officer, Mrs Francisca Ndlovu said the Matobo DACE was a centre where farmers could go for look and learn tours.
She said leader farmers were being trained on various farming techniques which they could then cascade to the various wards they come from.
“Farmers adopt better after seeing, hence they’ll be able to practically assess the performance of various varieties under farm conditions from planting to harvesting. As a DACE we work with research institutions as research is farmer-centred,” said Mrs Ndlovu.
She said they also work with farmers in the private sector for high yielding seed varieties and other requisite inputs that will aid farmers to achieve high yields.
Mrs Ndlovu said the DACE was an interaction platform for various stakeholders so that they can share different products and services that positively contribute to enhanced productivity.
“Not only does the DACE benefit farmers but it also provides insights to the future generation. Through visits, students get assistance that helps them in their Continuous Assessment Learning Activity (CALA) and agric classes,” she added.
With the assistance of the MACE, Esigodinibased cattle breeder, Mr Obert Chinhamo of Biano Simmentals Farm carries out artificial insemination of his cattle.
Commenting on the importance of artificial insemination, he said since not everyone could own a bull, insemination was assisting farmers grow their herds without bulls and regardless of their geographical location.
For example, Mr Chinhamo said 100 people could use one bull that has proven traits that everyone wants through artificial insemination.
As a stud breeder, he said they mainly use common sires, that is bulls used for breeding purposes.
The term, sire, is breeding-specific, for a bull that fathers a calf, while bulls who have not fathered any calves will not be considered sires because they would have not yet sired offspring.
“In other words, by using common sires, we want to compare progeny differences that are predictions of the genetic transmitting ability of a parent to its offspring, from different herds regardless of geographical locations and conditions,” said Mr Chinhamo.
He said they had witnessed the success rate of artificial insemination as stud breeders and based on some of the work they have done with the MACE overtime, percentage wise the success was around 60 percent.
MACE head Mr Tendai Matekenya said to ensure the successful roll out of the insemination programme in collaboration with the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) they had trained Agritex and Department of Veterinary Services extension officers from Insiza and Matobo districts as part of support to Government’s efforts to build the capacity of livestock value chains and improve the quality of the national herd.
Mr Matekenya said they intend to further develop the insemination concept at the MACE laboratory with most of the new equipment that has been availed to them by Zakis.
Highlighting some of the key projects being carried out by MACE, the institution’s research officer Ms Olivia Mukondwa said as a centre of excellence, they were also assisting farmers with soil seed bank analysis and rangeland reclamation, chemical analysis for locally found feed stuffs and feed formulation.
She said they were also carrying out farm feeding trials, fodder production, feed formulation and preservation for use during the dry season and promoting use of improved varieties for traditional grains through on farm demonstrations among others.
Ms Mukondwa said: “As the MACE, we’re carrying out research on a number of areas which were highlighted by the Farmer
Needs Assessment Survey as the key research priorities that farmers requested key technical departments to address.”
“Gaps identified included unavailability of adaptable and highly productive cattle and goat breeds, droughts, shortage of feed in the dry season, unavailability of quality grazing and a challenge of diseases. For crops, bird damage on traditional grains varieties, low yields pest (fall army worm) and diseases.”
She said several innovations promoted under their broad approach of interventions to assist farmers have significantly improved productivity in most production areas including the dry areas of the country and detailed many agronomic management practices that lead to productivity in crop production systems.
Zakis head of project, Mr Kumbirai Nhongo said the ACEs and DACEs have become places where agricultural research, education and extension integrate together with private sector partnerships, designed to empower farmers.
He said activities being undertaken at the facilities include promotion of the Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme, private sector demonstrations and trials, and demonstration of various climate smart agricultural practices.
These include fodder production, rainwater harvesting, fall-army worm management and artificial insemination among others.
“ACEs and DACEs are also linked with digital extension platforms such as Ward Information Centres, where farmers can access audio-visual content and internet services to further their farming operations. Training of extension staff and farmers within the training centres are established at each site,” said Mr Nhongo.
“Each site is also running agro-business projects as part of their respective sustainability strategies in areas such as poultry, fish, crop, and horticultural production. Evidently, ACEs and DACEs are contributing to various national development programmes among them Vision 2023, National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) and the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy,” he said.
Zakis development partners comprise Welthungerhilfe (WHH), Community Technology Development Organisation (CTDO), Sustainable Agriculture Technology (SAT) and ICRISAT.