News / National
Government to construct more small earth dams
16 Feb 2024 at 17:17hrs | Views
Government through the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development plans to construct small earth dams across all the country's eight catchment areas under the Catchment Area Based National Soil Conservation Programme.
This comes in the backdrop of Government having constructed a total of 38 small dams and weirs of a targeted 40 in 2023.
Small earth dams are water bodies designed to make smallholder farming viable, and complement large dams.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, Prof Obert Jiri, made the revelations through his social media X handle.
"The Ministry is committed to constructing small earth dams across all eight catchment areas as part of the Catchment Area-Based National Soil Conservation Programme. Our focus on irrigation development is evident, with a total of 38 small dams and weirs constructed by 2023," said Prof Jiri.
Some of the catchment areas include Gwayi, Manyame, Save, Runde, Sanyathi, Mazowe and Umzingwane.
Government's deliberate thrust of building dams countrywide is fast driving the country towards food security as well as enhancing resilience building and adaptation capabilities in the face of climate change.
It is key in transforming subsistence agriculture at household level into commercial agriculture as part of the rural development and industrialisation in line with Vision 2030.
Dam construction is part of a broader plan towards food security under the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).
The major objective under the Food and Nutrition Security pillar under NDS1 is to improve food self-sufficiency and to retain the regional breadbasket status, as well as increase food self-sufficiency from the current level of 45 percent to 100 percent.
This comes in the backdrop of Government having constructed a total of 38 small dams and weirs of a targeted 40 in 2023.
Small earth dams are water bodies designed to make smallholder farming viable, and complement large dams.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, Prof Obert Jiri, made the revelations through his social media X handle.
"The Ministry is committed to constructing small earth dams across all eight catchment areas as part of the Catchment Area-Based National Soil Conservation Programme. Our focus on irrigation development is evident, with a total of 38 small dams and weirs constructed by 2023," said Prof Jiri.
Government's deliberate thrust of building dams countrywide is fast driving the country towards food security as well as enhancing resilience building and adaptation capabilities in the face of climate change.
It is key in transforming subsistence agriculture at household level into commercial agriculture as part of the rural development and industrialisation in line with Vision 2030.
Dam construction is part of a broader plan towards food security under the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).
The major objective under the Food and Nutrition Security pillar under NDS1 is to improve food self-sufficiency and to retain the regional breadbasket status, as well as increase food self-sufficiency from the current level of 45 percent to 100 percent.
Source - Byo24News
