Harare, (New Ziana) –The agricultural sector in Zimbabwe has expanded fourfold in the past few years, growing from a value of less than US$3 billion to over US$12 billion over the past seven years, a Cabinet Minister has said.
Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Jenfan Muswere said this on Thursday after touring his Ministry stand at the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show in Harare.
The stand houses other departments that fall under the Ministry purview such as New Ziana, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) and the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC), among others.
Dr Muswere credited the media for its role in keeping the nation informed about ongoing developments and for connecting agriculture, industry, and communities.
“We have managed to transform and improve agriculture from a total size of less than US$3 billion pre-New Dispensation to more than US$12 billion. This growth has enhanced food security and nutrition security as enshrined in our Constitution, which is one of the greatest achievements of the Second Republic,” he said.
He highlighted several milestones, including wheat self-sufficiency, the roll-out of the Pfumvudza/Intwasa program, the transformation of Command Agriculture, and banking sector reforms that have supported farming.
Dr Muswere noted that resilience-building programs enabled the country to withstand one of the worst droughts in four decades, among them the agro-ecological tailoring program, which remapped agricultural regions last defined in the 1960s.
“Such revisions have boosted production, especially in cash crops. For example, tobacco output has surpassed 350 million kilograms, supported by the Tobacco Transformation Plan,” he said.
He also pointed to massive investments in water infrastructure, with dams such as Marovanyati, Muchekeranwa, and Tokwe-Mukosi completed, while construction of the Gwayi-Shangani Dam is ongoing, developments he said underpin long-term food sovereignty, adding mechanisation has also improved dramatically.
“After the fast-track land reform program, we had about 2 500 tractors. Today, the figure has risen to more than 15 000, attesting to the growth of the sector,” he said.
Dr Muswere stressed that the growth of the agricultural sector was not only about primary production, but also about strengthening secondary industries, linking farmers, processors, and communities.
New Ziana
