Bulawayo,(New Ziana) – The Indian government is prepared to deepen cooperation with Zimbabwe in agriculture through elements of its model to guide and strengthen the rapidly modernising sector in the country.
Indian ambassador to Zimbabwe Brahma Kumar, said this on Friday at the second Traditional Grains Conference held at the Zimbabwe International Exhibition Centre(ZIEC) in Bulawayo which the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics(ICRISAT) convened.
ICRISAT is an international organisation which conducts agricultural research for rural development, headquartered in Patancheru, Hyderabad, Telangana, India, with several regional centres and research stations.
Kumar gave a detailed account of the evolution of agriculture in India, saying his country share the vast experience in transforming the food systems from famine vulnerability to global agritech leadership with Zimbabwe for mutual benefit.
“India and Zimbabwe will have a lot to share with each other for mutual benefit, and we can explore how we can institutionalise interactions between our countries in this agriculture sector,” he said, adding India’s huge population and wide ecological zones have shaped an agricultural system unmatched in scale.
“Agriculture provides a livelihood to nearly 55 percent of the population. With the world’s second largest agricultural land area, India is a global leader in farm output,” he said.
Kumar noted noted that India has the world’s largest cattle herd, the biggest area under rice, wheat and cotton, and is the top global producer of milk, lentils and spices.
“India is also the second largest producer of fruits, vegetables, tea, farm fish, cotton, sugar cane, wheat and rice. These strengths make the country of 1.5 billion people self-sufficient in food supply. The food processing industry alone accounts for 32 percent of the national food market and ranks fifth globally,” he said.
He said his country`s agricultural exports have surged to an all-time high of US$51.86 billion, up from US$48.15 billion in 2024 while in the this financial year.
“Agriculture and allied sectors contributed 17.8 percent to national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with the government now planning multi-billion-dollar investments in fisheries, irrigation, credit access and post-harvest systems,” he said.
On agritech, Kurmur said, digital technologies, precision agriculture and data-driven platforms are increasingly intersecting with traditional systems.
He said India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) is expected to unlock US$65 billion in value by 2030 and anchor the country’s march toward a US$1 trillion agriculture sector.
Kumar said India stands ready to support Zimbabwe by facilitating institutional exchanges, technical missions and commercial partnerships.
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