By Mthokozisi Mabhena

AGRICULTURE  has been the mainstay of African economies. For Zimbabwe, tobacco — often referred to as ‘the golden leaf’ — remains one of the most strategic contributors to export earnings, employment and household incomes. The sector has underwritten school fees, built homes and fed multitudes. Yet, ironically, those who grow this golden crop often do so on fragile foundations left to the whims of weather, the brutality of climate shocks and the haunting unpredictability of market and input costs.

In this context, the recent debt relief programme introduced by the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) under the Tobacco Inputs Credit Scheme (TICS) is not just welcome; it is a lifeline. It is a much-needed gesture of compassion and pragmatism, extended to the hardworking tobacco growers who have found themselves trapped in debt through no fault of their own. This initiative represents not only a recognition of past challenges but a commitment to a more inclusive, sustainable agricultural future. One where ‘no farmer is left behind’. A future aligned with the Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan (TVTP) that seeks to empower growers, boost production to 300 million kilogrammes annually, and increase local value addition.

However, I must sound a word of caution:— relief alone is not enough. Forgiveness of past debt cannot guarantee future success. To truly deliver transformation, we must confront the structural weaknesses that have made debt cycles recurrent in the first place. Chief among them is our dangerous over-reliance on rain-fed agriculture.

In this day and age,  we can no longer afford to romanticise rainfall. We can no longer allow farmers — especially those cultivating a premium export crop like tobacco — to continue operating at  the mercy of the skies. The global climate is changing. The predictable rain patterns of the 1980s are now history. Droughts are more frequent. Cyclones are deadlier. Heatwaves are harsher. And still, year after year, we gamble with the coming of the rain season, hoping for generous clouds instead of preparing for their absence.

This cannot continue. If Zimbabwe’s tobacco sector is to survive — let alone thrive — we must shift to controlled agriculture. That means building a sector that does not depend on climate luck but on planned, deliberate mechanisms, starting with irrigation infrastructure and agriculture insurance.

This is not an abstract policy suggestion. This is a call to action grounded in the harsh realities faced by thousands of growers who pour sweat into the soil only to watch entire seasons go up in smoke due to drought. The same growers who, when faced with poor rainfall, cannot meet their loan obligations, cannot pay school fees, cannot restock, and cannot plan for tomorrow. This is a structural trap that must be broken.

The first and most practical step towards controlled agriculture is ensuring access to water not just during rainy seasons but year-round. This is where the national strategy must prioritise the drilling of boreholes, particularly for communal, A1, and A2 farmers who have been historically underserved in infrastructure investment. Water is life, yes, but for a farmer, water is the difference between prosperity and poverty. The Presidential Borehole Scheme has ensured availability of water in urban areas. Let us extend this scheme to our farmers.

The Government, through the TIMB and in collaboration with private contractors, development partners, and agricultural banks, must roll out a national borehole drilling initiative tailored for tobacco-producing zones. These boreholes should not be treated as charitable projects; they must be embedded into the structural transformation of our agricultural landscape. Let us classify boreholes as essential farm infrastructure just like tractors or barns. Where every registered tobacco grower can access a drilled water point within a manageable distance. This must be a non-negotiable priority under the TVTP.

Why boreholes? Because they represent a decentralised, sustainable solution that gives growers a measure of independence. Unlike large dam projects which take years and billions, boreholes can be drilled in days, scaled rapidly, and require minimal bureaucracy. When paired with solar-powered pumps and simple drip irrigation kits, they unlock a future where farmers can irrigate their crop at critical stages, guaranteeing plant survival and quality.

We must also localise the supply chains for this infrastructure. Encourage local manufacture of irrigation kits, train youth in borehole drilling and maintenance, and create rural technical centres that can repair and maintain water systems. This is about more than water — it is about jobs, skills, and local industry stimulation.

Secondly, the sector must embrace agriculture insurance as a core component of responsible farming. Debt relief programmes are noble, but they are, in many ways, reactive. They respond to crisis. Insurance, by contrast, is proactive. It is what modern agriculture is built on, a buffer against loss, a financial shock absorber and a planning enabler. Without it, one poor season is enough to send a farmer into permanent debt.

Unfortunately, insurance uptake among smallholder and even medium-scale tobacco growers remains dangerously low. Many either do not understand it, cannot access it, or have not been offered affordable products that speak to their needs. This must change. TIMB, in partnership with agribusiness players and the insurance sector, must design accessible, affordable insurance packages bundled into input schemes, with clear claim processes, and backed by education campaigns in the vernacular languages. Insurance must be seen not as a luxury but as a farm necessity, just like seed or fertiliser.

Imagine a scenario where every farmer who signs up for TICS is automatically insured against drought, pest outbreaks and market crashes. The costs can be partly subsidised through Government mechanisms or factored into a national agricultural risk pool. The critical point is this: We cannot keep treating climate loss as a personal tragedy. It is an economic risk that must be managed with modern tools.

The issue of farmer viability is one that has long plagued our agricultural reform efforts. We give inputs. We support through credit. But year after year, a significant percentage of growers fail to break even. We must interrogate this honestly. If a farmer is given fertiliser, seed, land, and technical support, why are they still failing?

When resources are availed when the system has done its part failure should not be tolerated. This is not harshness; it is economic common sense. A national input credit programme must be accompanied by strict monitoring, yield tracking, and repayment enforcement. The debt relief we see today must be the last of its kind, not the beginning of a cycle.

We need a culture shift in farming. A shift that recognises that farming is not a lifestyle; it is a business. And, like any business, it must be guided by efficiency, record keeping, planning, and a drive for excellence. TIMB and its partners must roll out farmer training modules on financial literacy, yield maximisation, climate-smart practices, and post-harvest handling. Every grower must understand their breakeven point, their yield targets, and their repayment timelines. We must professionalise our farming or risk forever operating at subsistence margins.

As we secure primary production through controlled agriculture, we must also look ahead to value addition. The Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan speaks of expanding production to 300 million kilogrammes annually but we must not export all of it raw. That would be a betrayal of our economic logic. Zimbabwe must become a global centre for tobacco processing, packaging, branding, and innovation. We must move from leaf exporters to brand owners.

This demands strategic investment in processing plants, farmer cooperatives, marketing infrastructure, and export promotion. The dream is to have Zimbabwean brands on global shelves, not just bales on ships. Let us take inspiration from the coffee sectors of Ethiopia or the cocoa boards of Ghana. Control your value chain, and you control your destiny.

Any future vision must place a premium on inclusive participation. Women and youth are not just demographic categories; they are the most dynamic potential force for growth. Let us ensure that boreholes are drilled in communities where women farmers lead. Let insurance products be tailored for young agripreneurs. Let youth be trained as irrigation technicians, drone operators, agro-ecologists. Give them a stake not just in farming but in managing the systems that make farming viable.

We cannot afford to lose our young people to urban idleness or economic despair. They must see that agriculture is not backward; it is a frontier for wealth, innovation, and pride.

The vision is clear. The resources are being mobilised. The political will is in place. What is needed now is execution without compromise. Every dollar invested in agriculture must show results. Every borehole drilled must be functional. Every insured farmer must be empowered to succeed. Every loan extended must be repaid, not because of coercion, but because it led to real productivity.

As we journey towards a 300-million-kg tobacco target, let it not be on the backs of tired farmers who suffer in silence. Let it be on the shoulders of empowered growers armed with water, protected by insurance, trained in best practice and connected to vibrant markets.

Controlled agriculture is not a luxury. It is the minimum standard for 21st-century food and cash crop production. It is the difference between cycles of poverty and cycles of prosperity.

Let us get to work. Let us drill. Let us insure. Let us train. Let us build. And let us do so with urgency, with seriousness, and with pride. Agriculture is not just an economic activity. It is the soul of our nation. And when we get it right, everything else will follow.