THE business and commerce sector comprise the following sub-sectors: accounting, management, information and communication technology as well as library and information sciences.
There is a skills surplus of 21 percent in Zimbabwe for this cluster, with major surpluses in business and administration (321 percent) and transport services (335 percent).
However, digital marketing and advertising have a skills deficit of 67 percent.
There is therefore need for focused planning and subsequent education and training to correct the skills surplus and redirect resources and funding towards areas with skills shortages.
There is need to increase skills in the deficient areas as illustrated in Table 5: Accounting and taxation; digital marketing and advertising as well as business and administration (incorporation of data analytics and digital literacy skills required in decision making).
There is need to review curricula for the business and commerce sector to infuse big data analytics, machine learning and predictive financial analytics.
There is also need to mainstream cyber-security skills in this sector, given that Zimbabwe has achieved 96 percent electronic transaction levels and is experiencing market-place replacement by market-space.
Agriculture is Zimbabwe’s economic mainstay and consequently the largest employer, contributing 68 percent of the people in employment. Zimbabwe’s vision in the area of agriculture is to be self-sufficient in food production and regain the status of being the regional bread basket.
Boosting agricultural production will grow Zimbabwe’s economy by reducing importation of agricultural products and earn foreign currency through increased exports. Furthermore, in order to revive the manufacturing sector/processing industries in Zimbabwe, production in agriculture must be at optimum.
The vision to grow the economy through agriculture can be realised through the development of a highly skilled agriculture workforce from the level of the farmhand right up to the agriculture specialist in research and development. Of the 68 percent employed in the agricultural sector, very few of them are formally skilled for the work they are doing. It is thus not surprising that, for example, our average hectarage output for maize is way below expected for most of our farmers. Removing constraints like inputs and skills levels have a significant influence on the below expected yields.
For Zimbabwe, to achieve economic competitiveness in the area of agriculture, skills in the following areas are required in the agricultural sector:
– Crop and Livestock: To maintain the quality of farm produce, crops and livestock as well as engender global competitiveness.
– Horticulture: Embracing new techniques to boost production of quality fruits, vegetables flowers and any other cultivars that can compete on the global market.
– Fisheries: Upscaling the breeding and harvesting of fish from our natural and artificial water bodies.
– Veterinary: To increase capabilities in the prevention, control and treatment of animal diseases (existing and emerging), disorders and injuries.
– Forestry: For conservation of forests, woodlands and associated resources.
The NCSA revealed that critical skills in agriculture from the country’s universities and agricultural colleges are below the national requirement towards Vision 2030. Table 6 below shows that Zimbabwe’s production of agricultural skills as of 2017 graduation levels is below Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) levels with an average deficit of 88 percent.
Based on the above analysis, Zimbabwe requires technical agricultural skills at all levels if it is to be competitive in using current and emerging technologies in agricultural practices. Table 6 shows that the agricultural sector deficit is above 80 percent. To this end, specialist skills are required for innovation in agriculture achieved through research and development as:
– There are only 380 specialists produced in crop and livestock area (deficit of 95 percent) for the whole country as illustrated in Table 6, when in effect the country has embarked on Command Agriculture both in cattle and crop production. In animal science, the required skills are in animal genetics, anatomy and physiology of farm animals, animal nutrition, micro-biology, animal welfare, livestock improvement, animal health, processing of animal products and animal production, among others.
– Need for self-sustenance has prompted most land holders to become entrepreneurs in various fields of agriculture. These require basic skills in farm management, agribusiness, marketing, agronomy and livestock management in order to succeed in the farming business. Furthermore, a critical skill in managing succession has been the major backbone of the success of farming in developed nations given the disruptions that result from attrition of the parent farmers.
– In the veterinary area, there is a deficit of 82 percent. The country is grappling with a number of diseases that are affecting livestock production. These require biosafety skills to curb the incidents of the diseases. For example, in 2017, Zimbabwe faced a challenge in containing the highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N8) leading to huge financial losses. The Government has also embarked on Command Livestock production to boost the national herd. This should be complemented by availability of skills to deal with issues of diseases and proper nutrition to these animals.
– Agricultural practices have become highly mechanised for competitiveness and this places a high demand on research and development skills in agricultural engineering. This ensures local production of appropriate technologies and reduced costs of importing technologies currently obtaining.
– Agricultural engineering at strategic, supervisory and operational levels where there is insufficient human capital with skills for management of agricultural machinery, installation and management of irrigation infrastructure; rehabilitation and construction of storage facilities for agricultural produce to minimise post-harvest losses; construction and maintenance of infrastructure for crop and livestock production in protected environments.
In order for Zimbabwe to improve the quality and quantity of skills in the agricultural sector, the following strategies are recommended:
– Increase uptake of high-end research skills by funding PHD programmes in the agriculture sector.
– There is need to constantly develop and review curricula in tandem with ever changing technological developments as well as taking cognisance of market trends.
– Increase specialist agricultural colleges to concentrate on teaching and learning to maximise farm production of major foreign currency earners.
The world has become a global village, thus skills for the agriculture sector in Zimbabwe should aim at producing agricultural produce which is competitive on the global market. With adequate skills in the agriculture sector, Zimbabwe has the potential to regain its international markets in horticulture, beef and maize exports, thus significantly contributing to the much needed foreign currency and uplifting the standard of living of farmers.
Investment into infrastructure development for future skills in agriculture including nanotechnology; agricultural biotechnology; digital precision farming; GIS remote sensing for disease, pest, crop and animal nutrient management in agriculture.