By Gift Bhowa

MORE farmers must grow drought-resistant crops to guarantee harvests and mitigate effects of climate change, a Cabinet Minister has said.
Among the effects of climate change is erratic rainfall patterns.
Already, the Zimbabwe Meteorological Services has predicted erratic rainfall which is most likely going to affect farmers who practice rain-fed agriculture in the 2018/2019 summer cropping season.
The Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement, Perence Shiri, said Government has put in place measures and strategies to mitigate the effects of drought.
Speaking to journalists after being sworn in as a Cabinet Minister, Cde Shiri said plans would be implemented to ensure a successful farming season.
“We will find ways of countering issues of drought which we are made to believe we will be encountering this coming season,” said Min Shiri.
As part of solutions to counter effects of climate change, the Minister urged farmers to grow drought resistant crops that do not require a lot of rainfall.
“As a result of the predicted drought, we are encouraging farmers to grow small grains because most of them are known to be drought resistant,” said Min Shiri.
Drought resistant crops that do well in the country include millet, sorghum and rapoko.
The Minister said they were educating farmers on best practices and ways to maximise water usage.
“We are teaching farmers on water harvesting techniques so that they can derive maximum benefit from the little water they get, whether in the form of water from rains or irrigation,” he said.
The Agriculture Ministry has also partnered with the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) to resume the construction of weirs.
According to ZINWA, the programme, under Command Water Harvesting, is set to improve water security in rural communities.
The weirs and small dams will allow for the storage of water during summer for use in the dry season.
Government has since completed 48 weirs, while a further 158 are set to be completed before the end of year.
Weirs now completed include Mutasa, Bunganirwe, Nyamasara, Chimokono, Fombe-Nyakachebve, Mutorahuku in Manicaland and Gomo Dakudzwa in Mashonaland Central.
The weirs are meant to hold water during the period that the country will be receiving rainfall and having river flows.
The water will then be utilised by communities during the dry period. These weirs will now fill the gap, providing water for the irrigation of smallholder gardens, irrigation schemes as well as providing supplementary water to rain-fed crops.
The weirs will also provide water for dip tanks, livestock and even wildlife.
Water harvesting is based on the principle of depriving part of the land of its share of rain, which is usually small and non-productive, and adding it to the share of another part. This brings the amount of water available to the latter area closer to crop water requirements, thereby permitting economic agricultural production.
Cde Shiri also said “…the government is currently working on improving irrigation systems to meet the required standards of performance.”
Irrigation in Zimbabwe has been vital to farmers as it increases crop yield, protects from famine and helps to cultivate superior crops with the water supply as per need of the crops. Ultimately, it helps in economic development.
The Minister also said Government is making efforts to repair irrigation systems to make sure food shortages can be eradicated and make sure there is enough food for consumption.
“The Agriculture Ministry is in charge of food security as you know. We have quite a number of dams and want to make sure they are equipped with irrigation facilities so that we can irrigate our crops,” said Cde Shiri.
The Government has been funding irrigation programmes to communal farmers who have their farms near water bodies.
“We have a lot of water bodies (but) some of the irrigation systems are in a state of disrepair. We are making concerted efforts to ensure those facilities are resuscitated so that, come farming season, we will be able to produce enough food for our consumption,” said the Minister.
The Government have availed at least US$80 million for the construction and reconstruction of dams after some were damaged during the floods that occurred during the 2016/2017 rain season. The money will also be used for repairs as there are 108 dams that were threatening to burst.
Zimbabwe has been facing severe droughts for the past three years. These droughts have left people in need of food aid.
The 2016 massive drought was declared a state of disaster following widespread crop failure, the death of thousands of livestock and near destruction of many rural people’s way of life.
The drought was caused by El Nino, a phenomenon which is currently causing a warming up of the weather in several parts of the world. 
In Zimbabwe and across southern Africa, El Nino has wreaked havoc, leading to reduced or delayed rains.
El Nino is the warming of surface ocean waters in the eastern tropical Pacific. Currently, it occurs every two to seven years and can last between six and 18 months.