Staff Reporter

Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector has received a major boost with the arrival of over 35 000 metric tonnes of top-dressing fertiliser, ensuring that farmers under the Pfumvudza/Intwasa Programme have adequate inputs for the season.

This comes as 7 000 metric tonnes are already in the country, ready for distribution.

Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Permanent Secretary, Professor Obert Jiri, said that the goods train wagons carrying imported ammonium nitrate (AN) fertiliser for the Presidential Inputs Scheme have started arriving in Harare, marking the beginning of an extensive distribution process to farmers across the country.

“We have already commenced distributing AN, with the first batch of 5,000 metric tonnes already dispatched to farmers. We want to assure Pfumvudza/Intwasa farmers that top-dressing fertiliser is coming via the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) depots, and we encourage them to take advantage of any sunny breaks to apply it,” said Professor Obert Jiri.

The company responsible for supplying the AN fertiliser, FSG, has also assured farmers that deliveries are on schedule and will be completed on time.

“We have been loading this fertiliser from South Africa and bringing it into Zimbabwe daily. There is plenty of AN, and we are confident that we will finish importing it on time,” said one of the truck drivers.

The fertiliser is being offloaded at Bak Storage in Harare before being distributed to various GMB depots, where farmers will collect their inputs.

“Today, we have received 22 trucks from South Africa, which we have already offloaded. Additionally, 80 train wagons at Lochinvar Yard are set to be offloaded starting tomorrow morning,” said Bak Logistics Head of Operations, Shane Dicks.

The Pfumvudza/Intwasa Programme, which has become Zimbabwe’s flagship food security initiative, has so far benefited over 3.5 million households across the country.

The timely supply of top-dressing fertiliser is expected to further enhance yields and bolster national food reserves.

With the rainy season in full swing, the Government’s swift action in securing and distributing agricultural inputs underscores its commitment to ensuring a productive farming season and strengthening Zimbabwe’s agricultural resilience.