Category: zimbabwe

Conrad Mupesa Mashonaland West Bureau

FOUR people died on the spot while two others escaped with injuries after a lorry rammed into the back of another lorry along the Chinhoyi-Chegutu road in Zvimba district, Monday evening.

Police confirmed the accident on its X handles saying the injured were taken to Murombedzi Hospital while the deceased were taken to the same institution’s mortuary for post-mortem.

Zvimba district development coordinator and district civil protection unit (CPU) chairman, Mr Joseph Manyurapasi said the government was going to help the bereaved families and the injured.

Meanwhile, the province is also in mourning following the death of four artisanal miners after the collapse of a shaft at Kangela Mine, Chikuti area in Mhangura constituency last Friday.

This follows yet another deadly mining accident that saw at least ten people perishing at Bay Horse Mine in Chegutu at the end of September after a shaft caved in.

Precious Manomano–Herald Reporter

A harvest of nearly 3,8 million tonnes of cereals and oil seeds planted on three million hectares is expected by farmers for the coming season, ensuring continued cereal self-sufficiency for the fourth year running, with surpluses for stock and export and an ever smaller deficit of oil seed.

Maize will be under two million hectares this season, soyabeans will be under 60 000ha, sunflower 160 000ha, sorghum 350 000ha, pearl millet 200 000ha and cotton 270 000ha.

Under Pfumvudza, maize will be under 400 000ha, soyabeans will be under 6 230ha, sunflower 100 000ha, sorghum 250 000ha, pearl millet, 126 577ha and cotton will be under 180 000ha. 

The changeover to sunflower rather than soyabean for the main oil seed crop has been progressing fast in the last couple of years, with Pfumvudza farmers making the most of this cash crop.

Under National Enhanced Agriculture Productivity Scheme (NEAPS) for larger commercial farmers, CBZ and the AFC will be financing 40 000ha under maize, 5 000ha under soyabeans, 5 000ha under sunflower and 2 000ha under sorghum.

The country is targeting around 9,5 million Pfumvudza plots to ensure both household requirements with surpluses of grain plus the cash crops to build up rural incomes.

So far, Government is targeting three million rural beneficiaries with a minimum of three cereal plots each, depending on the agro-ecological region.

Statistics from the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development indicate that so far 4 460 tonnes of basal fertilisers have been distributed to all provinces.

About 14 514 tonnes of top dressing fertilisers have been delivered to provinces and 5 120 tonnes have so far been distributed. 

About 2 298 tonnes of maize seed have been delivered to the provinces.

Farmers have intensified land preparations, taking advantage of the recent rains to finalise land tilling.

The recent rains have been reported to have covered most parts of the country. Zimbabwe National Farmers Union (ZNFU) president Mrs Monica Chinamasa said the current rains are good for tobacco planting.

“The current rains are good for tobacco planting, but bad to those who have not finished harvesting wheat,” she said. 

“Farmers should take the opportunity to scale up land preparations. It is time to fully prepare so that farmers can engage in their different crop productions.”

Farmers are busy with Pfumvudza/Intwasa holing, the making of planting stations, while others are gathering mulching material and other forms of organic matter to deposit in the planting stations, while securing fertilisers and other necessary chemicals as well.

Distribution of Pfumvudza is underway in all provinces and is targeted at 3,5 million households countrywide under the Presidential Input Scheme.

Zimbabwe Indigenous Women Farmers Association Trust president Mrs Depinah Nkomo said if Grain Marketing Board speeds up grain payments, more inputs can be bought. 

Like other farmers, she wants to see payment being cash on delivery. 

“This will ensure that we go back to the fields well prepared. If we sell our crops on time, we also require payments on time so that we sustain farming and we also procure chemicals, fertilisers and seeds on time,” said Mrs Nkomo. 

“We are ready as farmers, but we need support on time to fulfil our obligations as farmers. We rely on farming, so in order to embark on another season we need money.’’

Mrs Margaret Runemo of Katawa Raffingora indicated that farmers should be properly paid, adding that production costs should be considered when setting producer prices.

“We need a mechanism in which inputs are not expensive, which enables farmers to retain profits, which they take home after the season,” she said.

The Government came in strongly with the Pfumvudza/Intwasa conservation scheme, Presidential Input Scheme and National Enhanced Crop Productivity Scheme (known better as Command Agriculture) among other initiatives, which all contributed to the big harvest.

The success is attributable not only to favourable rainfall, but also to early and effective preparations on the part of the Government, farmers and providers of the various inputs.

The Government Climate-Proofed Presidential Input Programme will target 3,5 million farmers from Communal, A1, Small-Scale Commercial Farming, Old Resettlement and the transient urban cultivation sectors for cereals, oilseeds and legumes.

Wallace Ruzvidzo-Herald Reporter

The Second Republic is rolling out 200 priority citizen-centric projects for the third 100-Day Cycle of 2023, as President Mnangagwa’s administration makes good on its mantra of leaving no one and no place behind in Zimbabwe’s development agenda.

Harare Metropolitan Province has 32, Matabeleland North 23, Mashonaland West 22, Manicaland 25, Midlands 14, Mashonaland Central 13, Masvingo 25, Mashonaland East 16, Matabeleland South 22 and Bulawayo Metropolitan 8. 

Government continues to roll out cross-cutting projects for the benefit of citizens, with the Lake Gwayi-Shangani construction, Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge Highway rehabilitation and the modernisation of the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport being the signature projects.

During a post-Cabinet briefing yesterday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Dr Jenfan Muswere, said 158 projects had been submitted by 23 ministries, including the Rural Infrastructure Development Agency (RIDA), for implementation.

The projects are being implemented in many provinces and of the 158 projects, 124 are ongoing while 34 are new.

Priority projects for the third 100-Day Cycle of 2023 and the reporting schedule were presented by the Minister of State for Presidential Affairs in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Lovemore Matuke.

Dr Muswere said Cabinet considered and approved the priority projects for the third 100-Day Cycle of 2023 and the reporting schedule, as presented by Minister Matuke.

“The nation is being informed that 158 projects were submitted by 23 ministries, including the Rural Infrastructure Development Agency (RIDA), for implementation during the 3rd 100-Day Cycle running from 11 September 2023 to 19 December 2023,” he said. 

“A total of 124 projects are on-going, while 34 are new. All the projects are citizen-centric with high impact and low risk, and were budgeted for in order to facilitate rapid implementation. 

“The Infrastructure and Utilities, and the Devolution and Decentralisation thematic areas provide the highest number of projects, and play a crucial role in the country’s socio-economic development trajectory.”

Government has been implementing high impact developmental projects across the country, with the aim of transforming communities.

President Mnangagwa has been urging all citizens to ensure they contribute meaningfully to national development under the mantra, “Nyika inovakwa, inotongwa nekunamatigwa nevene vayo/ Ilizwe lakhiwa, libuswe, likhulekelwe ngabanikazi balo”.

Nelson Gahadza-Senior Business Reporter

The Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) is conducting stakeholder awareness campaigns in preparation for carbon credit trading on the exchange, following the publication of legislation governing the securities.

Carbon credits are created from a project that reduces, removes, or limit greenhouse gas emissions. 

These projects include the planting of trees, investing in renewable energy or improving energy efficiency.

They are traded on platforms where buyers and sellers can trade the credits. Buyers of carbon credits can use them to offset their own emissions, while sellers can generate revenue from their emission reductions.

Carbon credits provide incentives for businesses and individuals to reduce their emissions, and help to finance projects that reduce emissions in developing countries.

In August this year, the Government published carbon trading regulations that allow carbon credit project developers to keep up to 70 percent of the proceeds for the first decade of the project, with the remaining 30 percent paid as an environmental levy.

“The carbon credits forum, which was recently held in Victoria Falls, managed to shed more light on the issuance and trading of voluntary carbon credits in the context of the Zimbabwean market.

“Therefore, VFEX is conducting stakeholder awareness before trading on the exchange,” VFEX said in its latest newsletter.

Before regulation, the country’s carbon credit projects were largely unregulated and required registration with authorities.

Zimbabwe is believed to be the world’s 12th largest producer of offsets, with 4,2 million credits generated from 30 registered projects last year.

The country’s largest project, encompassing a 785-kilometer stretch of forest in northern Kariba, is run in part by the South Pole, the world’s foremost seller of offset.

By trading voluntary carbon credits on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange, it becomes possible for buyers and sellers to connect easily.

This can lead to increased trading volumes, which can in turn make the market more efficient and transparent. 

The exchange can help to standardise the trading of carbon credits by implementing a set of rules and regulations that govern the market.

This can help to reduce transaction costs and improve market transparency. In addition, the stock exchange provides a platform for buyers and sellers to discover the true market price of voluntary carbon credits while ensuring that carbon credits are priced accurately and reflect their true value.

Further, trading voluntary carbon credits on a stock exchange can help to increase the availability of capital for carbon reduction projects as well as drive the development of new projects and technologies that help reduce carbon emissions.

It can also enhance transparency by providing a standardised platform for trading and reporting while reducing the risk of fraud and increasing investor confidence.

Meanwhile, the VFEX said the application for Contract for Differences (CFD) trading has been approved by the Securities Exchange Commission of Zimbabwe (SecZim) with the approved member now in the process of setting up systems to start trading.

“It is expected that CFD trading will commence before the end of the year,” it said.

CFD is a type of derivative contract that allows investors to speculate on the price movement of an underlying asset without actually owning it. 

CFDs can be used to trade a wide range of assets, including stocks, commodities, currencies, and indices.

When you enter into a CFD contract, you agree to exchange the difference between the opening and closing price of the underlying asset with your CFD broker. If the price of the asset goes up, a profit is made.

CFDs are leveraged products, which means that investors can control a large position with a relatively small deposit.