Matopos Research Centre now part of the Command Agriculture programme in Zimbabwe
Acting President of Zimbabwe, Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa, said Matopos Research Centre will now be part of the Command Agriculture programme. He toured the centre, which is run by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).
“I’m extremely impressed by the quality of work that is taking place here not only for Zimbabwe but for the entire region. I’m told that the benefits of research done here extend beyond SADC. We have therefore decided to take on board the Matopos Research Centre on our Command Agriculture programme. We have devised ways of finding funding. It will not be a problem for us to fund the research centre,” said Acting President Mnangagwa.
He said the services rendered by the centre were not only for Zimbabwe but also for humanity and encouraged the team running the institution to continue doing the good work. “As Government we do support this research centre but I believe we could do more. I know if we do more the results will be wider.
“Zimbabwe has five agricultural regions and they’re able to produce varieties which suit all the five regions. There is no part of Zimbabwe that should go hungry as a result of drought or low rainfall,” said Cde Mnangagwa.
He was accompanied by ministers Cdes Kembo Mohadi, Abedinico Ncube and Clifford Sibanda, Matabeleland South MPs and senior Government officials.
Excerpted from an article published in the Chronicle.
