Zimbabwe is intensifying efforts to transform the country from a regional food basket into an agro-industrial hub by domesticating the 2025 Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Kampala Declaration.
Speaking during the CAADP Sensitisation Workshop held at the Holiday Inn Harare yesterday, the Minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Water Resources Development, Dr Anxious Jongwe Masuka, said the new strategy marked a significant shift from the 2014 Malabo Declaration, which largely focused on food security.
Dr Masuka said the Kampala Declaration adopts a broader approach centred on value chains, agro-industrialisation and agriculture as a business.
“Zimbabwe is domesticating the 2025 CAADP Kampala Declaration into the Agriculture Food Systems and Rural Transformation Strategy under NDS2, marking a shift from the 2014 Malabo Declaration’s focus on food security to a broader value chain and agro-industrialisation approach that treats agriculture as a business,” he said.
The Minister said Zimbabwe had already taken early steps towards aligning with CAADP objectives through the incorporation of all six CAADP goals into ten pillars under NDS2.
“Zimbabwe was ahead in incorporating all six CAADP objectives as ten pillars in NDS2, which now gives us a stronger foundation to accelerate agricultural transformation and rural industrialisation,” said Dr Masuka.
He outlined five key principles guiding the country’s agricultural transformation agenda.
“The first principle is that agriculture must be treated as a business at every scale, from smallholder farmers to large commercial enterprises,” he said.
Dr Masuka said climate-proofing agriculture through accelerated irrigation development remained critical to ensuring sustainable production in the face of recurring droughts and climate shocks.
“The second principle is climate-proofing agriculture through accelerated irrigation development so that production is no longer solely dependent on rainfall patterns,” he added.
The Minister said Government was also prioritising a value chain approach to maximise earnings from agricultural products.
“We are pursuing a value chain approach that enables aggregation, beneficiation and value addition so that Zimbabwe captures more value from its agricultural commodities,” he noted .
Dr Masuka added that Government was implementing a systems approach that monitors 21 key enablers on a daily basis to improve agricultural performance and efficiency.
“Our ultimate goal is to transform Zimbabwe from a regional food basket into an agro-industrial hub by leveraging our strategic location, favourable climate, rich soils and abundant talent,” he said.
The CAADP Kampala Declaration is the African Union’s latest framework aimed at accelerating agricultural transformation, food systems development and rural industrialisation across the continent.
Zimbabwe is aligning its agricultural policies and development strategies with the declaration under NDS2 to drive economic growth, food security and industrial development.
