Source: The Herald – Breaking news.
Thupeyo Muleya
Beitbridge Bureau
THE Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) has a thriving horticulture project at its farm in Gwanda, Matabeleland South province, which is now providing supplementary feeding to prisoners.
Matabeleland South, a semi-arid region is characterised by poor rains.
ZPCS, with support from the National Aids Council (NAC), has set up a market garden project which is being complemented by its goat rearing project.
The prisons authorities like other farmers in the province, have embraced drip irrigation to counter the effects of climate change.
Drip irrigation is a type of micro-irrigation system that has the potential to save water and nutrients by allowing water to drip slowly into the roots of plants, either from above the soil surface or buried below the surface.
Under this type of irrigation, water is placed directly into the root zone of the plant and minimises evaporation.
In the past, many farmers were using canals, sprinklers or flood irrigation to water crops and due to depleting water sources for irrigation, many have now adopted drop irrigation to conserve water for both crop farming and livestock.
According to agriculture experts, the province requires an average of 400mm of rain water annually for a successful cropping season, but most of the districts have in the past few seasons received less than 80mm.
Gwanda ZPCS farm manager, Sergeant Fungai Joseph Muranda, said they were assisted by NAC to set up the project in 2015 with 83 goats and a one-hectare garden, which they are expanding to 2-hectres. Speaking to journalists during a NAC media tour, Sgt Muranda said the project was aimed at achieving food self-sufficiency. They produce tomatoes, onions, cabbages and vegetables and since 2015, the organisation produced more than 300 goats.
“We received water tanks from NAC and managed to set up a drip irrigation system which conserves water.
“This horticulture project is producing enough vegetables to meet our needs thereby saving us a lot of money. We are now working on expanding the project so that we can produce surplus to sell to the local market,” said Sgt Muranda.
He said drip irrigation conserves water compared to flood or using sprinklers and as such there is room to expand the project using the same source of water.
Sgt Muranda said they intend to introduce a variety of crops as they want the prison to be be self sufficient in food production.
He said under the goat project they are producing for other correctional facilities in the province to enhance food and nutrition mainly for inmates on antiretroviral treatment (ART).
“On the rehabilitative aspect, we impart good agricultural practices to our inmates so that they successfully reintegrate into society upon release and reduce recidivism,” he said.
Acting sister-in-charge of Gwanda ZCPS, Sister Sukoluhle Nyathi said: “We are grateful for the donation of seed goats and market gardening from NAC which has helped us to improve the diet of the inmates, especially those on ART. You will note that at times people default when it comes to taking medication in cases where they have a poor diet.”
One of the inmates on ART said he had learnt a lot in terms of goat farming and drip based irrigation farming.
“For us things have improved for the better because of this project. I have learnt a lot of life changing skills which I will use whern I leave this place,” he said.
The inmate said he intends to start his own goat rearing project and small garden when leaves prison in the next four months.
Gwanda District Aids Coordinator, Mrs Alice Moyo, said they decided to assist the ZPCS as part of their broad based interventions to tackle HIV/Aids.
She said they will keep exploring other ways of making people living with HIV/Aids adapt and cope with life.