LANDS minister Anxious Masuka says government has initiated consolidated climate proofing interventions, including rehabilitation of irrigations schemes throughout the country to boost food security in the face of El-Nino fears.
Weather forecasters predicted normal to below normal rainfall this summer season.
Addressing journalists in Harare on Tuesday, Masuka said the climate-proofing programme included expanding the Pfumvudza/Intwasa programme as well as rehabilitating dams and irrigation schemes.
“The background and context is that the weather forecast that we have indicates we are likely to have a normal to below normal rainfall season for the greater part of the country. The first half of the season is October to December,” he said.
“The update from the Meteorological Services Department also indicates normal to below normal rainfall throughout the country from January to March, a much improved situation compared to what we have imagined.”
He said the government-funded agricultural input support programme will not be uniform, but based on agro-ecological zones as well as crop varieties suitable for each region.
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In a July update, FAO's Global Information and Early Warning Systems listed Zimbabwe as one of the southern African countries where the UN agency had prepared what it called “anticipatory protocols for drought” ahead of El Niño.
“Therefore no farmers in regions 4 and 5 will receive maize seed rather will receive traditional grain crop varieties which are better suited to that environment, especially in this situation that we are in from normal to below normal rainfall,” he said.
He added: “This year only those farmers who are done with 3 plots of Pfumvudza will receive inputs distribution for farmers and the inputs and the crop varieties are determined by the agro-ecological zones/regions and not what farmers want.