Zim has enough water for winter irrigation

Harare, (New Ziana) – The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) said on Monday the country had enough water to meet winter farming irrigation needs.

The country has in the past two seasons suffered droughts which affected
both crop harvests and dam water levels.

As a result of the droughts, over seven million people across the country
require food assistance.

But Zinwa said current water levels in dams could sustain farmers’ winter
irrigation needs, particularly for wheat.

“As the winter cropping season begins, Zinwa wishes to assure the nations that it has sufficient water in its dams to meet the winter cropping irrigation requirements as enunciated in the Agricultural Recovery Plan (ARP) and the Transitional Stabilisation Programme,” Zinwa said, urging farmers to apply for permits.

ZINWA is a government owned entity tasked with managing the country’s
water resources.

As of April 9, 2020, national dam water levels stood at 53.6 percent.

In terms of the ARP, government has said it will identify at least 5
000 highly productive farms with access to irrigation that will be
supported with all the necessary inputs and implements to boost crop
production.

Government has set an ambitious target to cover 85 000 hectares under
winter wheat production this season.
New Ziana