Rural transformation drive goes a gear up

Source: www.zimbabwesituation.com

Source: Rural transformation drive goes a gear up – herald Lonster Mutata Herald Correspondent THE rural transformation agenda has gained fresh momentum after the Government reaffirmed its commitment to secure land tenure and rural industrialisation as cornerstones of inclusive economic growth and national prosperity. Addressing delegates at the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) country strategy and programme evaluation engagement workshop in Harare recently, Lands and Rural Development Minister Vangelis Haritatos said the country was now entering a decisive phase in which the gains of the land reform must translate into production, wealth creation and sustainable rural livelihoods. The high-level engagement brought together Government officials, development partners, agricultural stakeholders and United Nations agencies to review the impact of IFAD-supported programmes in Zimbabwe and chart a future development pathway anchored on resilient rural economies.

Minister Haritatos said land remained the foundation of Zimbabwe’s economy, ecology and national identity, adding that the country’s transformation agenda cannot succeed without secure land rights, efficient land administration systems and productive agricultural communities capable of driving industrial growth from the grassroots. He said the Government was accelerating the finalisation of the new land policy and the operationalisation of the e-cadastre system under a Whole-of-Government approach designed to improve transparency, strengthen tenure security and enhance investor confidence among farmers. “Land is not merely a productive asset. It is the anchor of our economy, our heritage and our future. “The next phase of our national development trajectory requires us to transform land ownership into sustainable prosperity for our people,” he said.

In a major push towards modernising land administration, Minister Haritatos said the Government would strengthen the Surveyor General’s Department through the adoption of emerging technologies, including drone-based surveying systems, to accelerate land surveys and improve planning and management systems. The move is expected to help unlock greater agricultural productivity while ensuring orderly settlement development, efficient land use and improved environmental stewardship. Minister Haritatos said the rural development thrust was increasingly centred on building integrated rural economies capable of supporting agro-industrialisation, enterprise development and market-oriented production systems.

He noted that IFAD’s cluster-based development model strongly complements the land use masterplan and national vision of transforming rural communities into productive economic hubs linked to value chains, processing industries and export markets. “Through aggregation, value addition and rural industrialisation, we can retain greater value within rural communities, create employment opportunities and reverse migration pressures by making rural areas centres of opportunity and prosperity,” he said. Minister Haritatos stressed that the Government’s focus had now shifted from land redistribution towards maximising productivity and commercial viability, particularly through irrigation development and the commercialisation of communal farming areas situated near major water bodies and dams. With nearly 70 percent of the population residing in rural areas, Zimbabwe can no longer afford to sustain subsistence-oriented agriculture if it is to attain Vision 2030 of an upper-middle-income status, he added.

Instead, Minister Haritatos said communities must transition towards surplus production, rural enterprises and climate-smart farming systems capable of improving incomes and strengthening household resilience against climate shocks. The Government, he said, was targeting to double smallholder farmer incomes by 2030 through land security, climate-smart technologies, improved market access and value addition initiatives supported by strategic development partnerships. Minister Haritatos said the Government will act decisively on findings contained in the Zimbabwe Land Commission report in order to safeguard the gains of the Land Reform Programme while promoting productivity, inclusivity and long-term sustainability.

He underscored the importance of stronger collaboration between the ministries responsible for Lands and Agriculture, saying coordinated implementation remains critical in driving rural transformation and ensuring development interventions produce measurable impact at the community level. Minister Haritatos described the Government’s new implementation model as practical, action-oriented and policy-driven, with devolved systems designed to directly benefit women, youths, persons with disabilities and vulnerable rural households. The post Rural transformation drive goes a gear up appeared first on Zimbabwe Situation .

Related topics: rural transformation, land tenure, rural industrialisation, government policy, Minister Haritatos, IFAD, land reform, Zimbabwe economy

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