Targeting flour self-sufficiency at all costs
The winter wheat season is set to take off in the next few weeks and the Government has introduced a number of interventions to stimulate production after setting a target of 383 000 tonnes this year. THE SUNDAY MAIL (SM) spoke to Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement Secretary DR JOHN BASERA (DJB) who outlined the Government’s programme to enhance wheat production.
SM: Government has set a target of 75 000 hectares for winter wheat production. What initiatives have you put in place to ensure this target is achieved?
DJB: Global dynamics in food production and trade created an environment where countries are striving for food self-sufficiency.
Experiences from the Covid-19 pandemic that disrupted global logistics prompted the Government to be inward looking in guaranteeing adequate supply of strategic food commodities.
Wheat is one such critical strategic crop that ranks second in the food and nutrition security basket.
The national annual wheat requirement is estimated to be at 360 000 tonnes.
Last winter season (2021), wheat production stood at 337 000 tonnes leaving an import gap in excess of 23 000 tonnes. The 2022 winter wheat production plan is targeting at least 75 000ha with a view to producing over 383 000 tonnes.
At this level of production, the country is assured of achieving national self-sufficiency.
Such a mammoth task will not be achieved by adopting a business-as-usual approach, as such, the ministry is mobilising resources via increased participation of the private sector.
The private sector including individual farmers with their own resources, CBZ Agroyield, AFC Land Bank and other local banks have warmed up to the idea of supporting this initiative.
CBZ Agro-yield and AFC Land Bank are funding wheat under the National Enhanced Agriculture Productivity Scheme also known as Command Agriculture wherein CBZ is targeting about 36 500 hectares and AFC is targeting 10 000ha.
The Government, through the Presidential Input Programme, is also complementing by targeting 5 500ha, while a consortium of private sector players called Food Crops Contractors Association (FCCA) is targeting about 23 000ha.
The private sector has over the years been increasing its share of commercial value chain funding for wheat production from 8 000ha in 2020, 15 500ha in 2021 to 23 000ha this coming season.
The Ministry’s new policy thrust is that every private off-taker of agricultural commodities is compelled to contract farmers and support local production of at least 40 percent of their annual requirements to reduce imports.
Localisation of production is now critical than ever for the obvious reasons of creating employment, saving foreign currency through import substitution and improving the country’s terms of trade (balance of payments) in the agriculture category.
One of the fundamentals and cross-cutting factors across the National Development Strategy 1 and Vision 2030 is to crowd the participation of the private sector in the main levers of the economy (agriculture included) to support local value creation.
The motivation is that every inch of irrigable land must be put under wheat to be able to attain what we have set for ourselves, and our theme for the 2022 winter production is “Attaining flour self-sufficiency at all cost”.
To be able to track progress and inform corrective measures, the Ministry’s team including the extension delivery system will carry out periodic monitoring exercises so that any challenges will be promptly addressed.
This is in addition to the need to ensure adequate amounts of key inputs such as fertilisers, seeds and chemicals are available, affordable and within reach of farmers, most importantly on time.
As mentioned earlier, the Presidential Input Support Programme is also targeting about 5 500ha this coming season pursuant to Vision 2030 and the national aspiration that no one, no household, no demography and no place should be left behind.
This programme will give a lifeline support to farmers with less than 2ha of irrigation through giving them inputs free of charge in the form of fertilisers, seed and chemicals.
The Presidential Input Support Programme will target irrigation schemes beneficiaries in eight provinces, pursuant to the devolution agenda.
The fact that all water bodies are currently over 91 percent full on average, is a confidence boost to the success of the country’s 2022 winter wheat production planning efforts.
Engagements with farmers and key input and utility providers are ongoing so that farmers will not encounter any form of supply disruptions and challenges.
SM: Can you outline what the Government is doing to fast-track the farm mechanisation programme?
DJB: The Government is working closely with local manufacturers and assemblers of key mechanisation components and implements.
To date, the Government has injected seed resources into a revolving fund to support local production of farm implements comprising 500 rippers, 500 disc ploughs, 800 disc harrows, 500 boom sprayers and 200 maize shellers, which will be used as attachments and implements to tractors being imported under various facilities.
These attachments are distributed through banks in an “end user pay” model which is revolving in design and format.
Wheat producers, as well as the rest of the farming communities are accessing farming equipment through the Government-facilitated Belarus Farm Mechanisation Facility and the John Deere Farm Mechanisation Facility.
The Belarus Farm Mechanisation Facility is worth US$103 million and comprises two phases.
The facility will enable availing of 1 813 tractors, 76 combine harvesters, 210 planters, 5 low-bed trucks and 5 disc harrows.
The first phase valued at US$51 million enabled the country to receive equipment which includes 474 tractors, 60 combine harvesters, 210 planters and 5 low-bed trucks.
The second phase of US$52 million will avail 1337 tractors, 16 combine harvesters and 5 disc harrows.
The 16 combine harvesters are expected to arrive in the country by the end of June 2022 giving a total of 76 combine harvesters under this facility.
The John Deere Farm Mechanisation facility is worth US$51 million and the country expects to receive 1 300 tractors, 80 combine harvesters, 200 disc harrows, 600 planters, 100 boom sprayers and 100 trailers.
Similarly, the facility is divided into two phases of US$20 million and US$31 million respectively.
Under the first phase worth US$20 million, 60 tractors, 35 combine harvesters, 66 disc harrows and 48 planters have been delivered and all the equipment has been distributed through commercial banks.
The Ministry is not popularising the idea of owning capital intensive farming equipment, but it is encouraging improved access to the mechanisation services.
Ultimately, the sector has to reach a point where a farmer doesn’t necessarily need to own a sophisticated and expensive piece of agricultural equipment, but the services must be readily and affordably available.
In that respect, AFC Equipment Leasing Company was created as a subsidiary under AFC Holdings.
The AFC Equipment Leasing Company received 210 tractors, 32 combine harvesters and 130 planters which are currently accessible to all winter wheat farmers.
The farmers will pay for the services through either cash payment or a stop-order system activated through off-takers such as GMB and private buyers once they deliver their produce.
Over 250 combine harvesters are available to ensure that irrigating farmers harvest their 2021/22 summer crop on time to ensure a smooth summer to 2022 winter transition which is one of the key success factors for the wheat production plans.
In terms of irrigation development, Government working with the private sector and development partners has availed a number of game changing facilities to ensure the area under irrigation is increased and ultimately to climate proof the agricultural sector which is so vulnerable to climate change effects.
Nationwide, approximately 210 000ha of land has been equipped with irrigation infrastructure and about 180 000ha of that is currently functional.
The target is that by 2025 over 350 000ha will be irrigable.
This, as enshrined in the National Development Strategy 1, is the ultimate panacea to adapting to climate change effects and variabilities and climate proofing the agricultural sector, which is so vulnerable to climate change.
The key running facilities include Turnkey Irrigation Rehabilitation and Development Projects, NEAPS Irrigation Facility administered through CBZ, Pedstock Centre Pivot Facility, administered through AFC, and SIRP (Smallholder Irrigation Revitalisation Programme) co-supported by the Government of Zimbabwe and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
An additional 5 890ha is expected to be ready for winter wheat as a result of these facilities targeting all agricultural production sectors (smallholder farmers, A1 and A2 farmers) in eight provinces.
The target of some of these facilities are irrigation schemes with a view of enabling smallholder irrigation schemes to participate in the winter wheat programme.
SM: Are there any private sector players taking part in the mechanisation programme?
DJB: Besides, the AFC Leasing Company that is mandated to ensure that farmers have full access to mechanisation services through hiring out the services to farmers; other players including financial services institutions, banks, equipment suppliers are playing a significant role through their diverse product range offering to the farming communities.
Zimplow, Bain NewHolland, Croco, White Orchid Group, among many manufacturers of farming equipment have expressed interest to work with Government and farmers in supporting mechanisation.
Mechanisation is one of the basic fundamentals to upscale agricultural efficiencies and ultimately productivity and production and is a prerequisite requirement for the agricultural transformation process as we journey towards Vision 2030, agriculturally.
To date, the AFC Equipment Leasing Company has received 210 tractors, 32 combine harvesters and 130 planters which are currently accessible to all winter wheat farmers.
AFC Leasing Company is also in the process of purchasing locally manufactured equipment to match the number of tractors they have.
The farmers will pay for the services through either cash payment or a stop-order system activated and administered through registered off-takers once they deliver their produce.
The machinery under AFC Agricultural Equipment Leasing Company has been distributed to GMB depots across all eight rural provinces to ensure easy access by farming clusters.
The Agricultural Rural Development Authority (ARDA) is also providing mechanisation services to the farming communities on a lease basis to augment Government’s mechanisation efforts.
Further, the private players are also coming in with equipment including combine harvesters, tractors and equipment for tillage, planting, spraying, which they will hire out to all farmers.
SM: Power has been a major challenge, what is being done to ensure uninterrupted power supply during the winter cropping season?
DJB: The success of the winter wheat programme is hinged on uninterrupted supply of electricity for irrigation.
There is also a high-level Energy-Food Nexus Committee comprising Ministry of Energy and Power Development, ZESA, ZINWA, Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries Water and Rural Development and private sector players responsible for identifying key steps to be put in place to ensure uninterrupted utilities (electricity and water) supply to wheat producers.
One of the key strategies under consideration is ring-fencing electricity and prioritising wheat production clusters.
Negotiations are underway for wheat production funders such as commercial banks and contractors to make advance payments to ZESA so that electricity is ring-fenced to the wheat production clusters.
The Energy-Food Nexus Committee considers electricity as an equally important production input just like all the other input items such as seed, fertilisers and chemicals.
The relevant Ministry and departments has made assurances of uninterrupted power supply for a successful 2022 winter wheat season.
Further, the Ministry is encouraging farmers to pay for utilities including electricity and water to ensure uninterrupted supplies.
All dominoes are aligned for a successful 2022 winter wheat season as Government is making concerted efforts to green tick all the critical success factors for a successful 2022 winter wheat production season.
Through a new policy thrust, pre-planting producer price pronouncement, Government has set a floor producer price as follows: ordinary grade wheat $175 741,86 per tonne; premium grade wheat $193 316,05 per metric tonne.
The lucrative wheat floor price is based on cost build-up-plus-margin principle which was approved by Cabinet.
The ministry, starting April, 2022, will be conducting wheat production training in all wheat production clusters throughout the country.