By Tafanana Kwedu

Government has approved the Horticulture Recovery Plan (HRP), which the Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement presented to Cabinet yesterday, the Harare Post has learnt.

Minister of Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Monica Mutsvangwa says the HRP was an implementation mechanism for the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy (2020-2025).

“The Plans are all aimed at transforming agriculture from a US$5.2 billion to a US$8.2 billion sector, contributing 20 per cent of GDP by 2025 in line with the vision of making Zimbabwe an upper middle-income country by 2030.

“The Horticulture Recovery and Growth Plan focuses on two broad and mutually reinforcing areas, namely: a private sector-driven recovery of the conventional horticulture sub-sector; and a robust, inclusive and sustainable and transformative rural horticulture sub-sector,” she said.

She said the plan will be financed by both government and the private sector

“While the conventional Horticulture Recovery Plan will require US$1 047 719 284 from the private sector and partners, the Presidential Horticulture Scheme (PHS) will cost US$186 920 000 and cover 1.8 million rural households,” Mutsvangwa said.

Mutsvangwa said the PHS components such as household tree planting; village nutrition gardens; ward-based youth vegetable and horticulture gardens and orchards; schools vegetables and horticulture projects; mainstreaming indigenous vegetables and fruits; research, development and innovation in production, processing and value addition and beneficiation; and domestic and export market development.

“Over 25 000 boreholes will be sunk in all villages and schools to ensure viability and anchor sustainability, and to climate-proof the Presidential Horticulture Scheme,” she said.

Mutsvangwa said a US$1.217 billion annual rural horticulture economy will be created by 2025 growing to US$3.5 billion by 2030 while the export market for the same growth will generate upwards of US$1.469 billion annually, from 2025 onwards.

The implementation of the plan will be championed through the Horticulture Development Council (HDC), while the Presidential Horticulture Scheme will be co-ordinated by an inter-ministerial task force.

The agriculture sector is the country’s second foreign currency earner after the mining sector.