Zimbabwe is on the verge of making huge savings of over twenty million US dollars on reduced imports of grain through a strategic cooperative framework with leading Chinese industrial company China Lesso Group that is targeting thirteen thousand hectares for irrigation next year.
The framework of the agreement between the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, and Rural Resettlement and China Lesso Group through a memorandum of understanding consummated in Harare this Sunday, paves way for enhanced performance within the country’s agricultural sector through effective use of advanced technologies such as drip irrigation.
Twelve thousand eight hundred hectares are targeted for irrigation next year, with the expectations of an output of at least five thousand tonnes of grain per hectare.
Acting Chief Director Strategic Planning and Business Development in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, and Rural Resettlement, Mr. Clemence Bwenje says this effectively translates to huge savings on grain imports.
According to the Ministry of Lands official, the agreement entails a working structure of between thirteen and fifteen years, with a provision to extend the irrigation technologies to other crops such as wheat.
China Lesso Group is confident that its strategic partnership with Zimbabwe will lead to better performance and enhanced growth for the agriculture sector.
The Hong Kong stock exchange-listed -firm’s interest in Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector becomes its latest investment vehicle into Africa, amid expectations that the cooperation will extend into setting up equipment manufacturing facilities, positioning the nation as a hub for advanced agricultural equipment in Southern Africa.
