Only 10,85% of Zimbabwe's arable land under irrigation

Only 10.85% of Zimbabwe's two million hectares of irrigable land is currently under irrigation, a shortfall that continues to limit the country's food security and grain export potential, Deputy Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Vangelis Haritatos, has revealed.

Speaking at the opening of the inaugural European Union (EU)–Zimbabwe Business Forum in Harare on Tuesday, Haritatos highlighted the urgent need for increased irrigation infrastructure investment to unlock the country's vast agricultural potential, particularly in light of recurring climate shocks and erratic rainfall.

"We can irrigate two million hectares of land in Zimbabwe. Disappointingly, we only irrigate 217,000 hectares – just about 10% of our national capacity," Haritatos said.

"This is why the government occasionally declares food security, but as soon as a drought hits, we are back to declaring a disaster. We need to move beyond rain-fed agriculture."

Haritatos told delegates that Zimbabwe currently has 10,700 dams of various sizes, including 19 major ones, with the Gwayi-Shangani and Kunzvi dams as key priority projects. These dams are seen as multi-purpose investments that can enable irrigation, generate power, and support tourism.

"For example, the Kudu Dam in my constituency, Muzvezve, has the potential to irrigate 35,000 hectares and generate 20 megawatts of electricity," he noted.

He stressed that under the government's accelerated irrigation development and rehabilitation plan, Zimbabwe needs at least 497,000 hectares under irrigation, with 350,000 hectares specifically allocated for cereal crops.

"At 5.5 metric tonnes per hectare, 350,000 hectares would yield two million metric tonnes of grain in summer, and another two million in winter. Our domestic consumption is only 1.8 million metric tonnes, meaning we have the potential for significant surplus and export," said Haritatos.

He added that when combined with other government-supported programmes like the Presidential Input Scheme and rain-fed initiatives, Zimbabwe could realistically produce six to eight million metric tonnes of grain annually.

"We could easily export the surplus regionally and internationally if we improve our irrigation capacity," he said, making a strong pitch to EU investors to explore opportunities in the agricultural sector.

Zimbabwe's agriculture is also grappling with significant mechanisation gaps. According to Haritatos, the country currently has only 15,000 tractors instead of the required 40,000, and just 150 functional combine harvesters against a demand for 600.

"Our deficit of 25,000 tractors and 450 combine harvesters clearly indicates an urgent need for investment in mechanisation," he said.

The EU-Zimbabwe Business Forum, hosted in Harare, brings together over 60 companies from 12 EU member states including France, Germany, Austria, Finland, Poland, the Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and the Czech Republic.

The forum is focused on enhancing cooperation and investment in key economic sectors such as agriculture, horticulture, mining, and renewable energy.

A 2019 World Bank report titled Zimbabwe: Agriculture Sector Disaster Risk Assessment estimated that Zimbabwe's agricultural sector loses approximately US$126 million annually due to drought and other climate-related risks—further underscoring the need for robust irrigation and mechanisation systems.