Parliament has warned that the low productivity on most farms will continue due to insufficient funds allocated to agriculture in the 2023 national budget.
The Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development received ZWL$362.5 billion from Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube’s ZWL$4.5 trillion budget allocation.
However, in analysing the 2023 national budget, the portfolio committee on Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development chaired by Gokwe-Nembudziya MP Justice Mayor Wadyajena said the funds are inadequate to transform agriculture. He said:
The committee is concerned that the previous resource allocations have failed to transform the agriculture sector, as reflected by low yields.
Productivity at most farms is currently at about 1.5 to 2 tonnes per hectare, at a time when 4.5 to 5 tonnes per hectare is possible.
The adequacy of the ministry’s budget can also be assessed with respect to what the ministry had requested.
By comparing the ministry’s allocation in relation to what they had asked for, it is quite evident that they got only about 30% of their request which would mean that the programmes they were targeting will not be fully executed.
… The low resources relative to what had been bid is a concern for the committee, as this means that some projects and programmes that had been scheduled for next year will not be implemented.
The National Budget projects average annual inflation for 2023 to be double-digit levels without specifying a number.
If inflation ends up exceeding 56.4%, it would imply that the allocation for 2023 is lower than the 2022 allocation in real terms.
Wadyajena said the committee is concerned that the allocation to agriculture is only 8% which is below what would be ideal for the sector. He said:
The committee is therefore worried that the allocation of about 8% to agriculture is below the Maputo and Malabo Declarations.
This is made worse by the fact that the ministry is very broad, with its mandate including other areas which might not be under the functions of the ‘agriculture’ ministries in other countries, for example, ‘water’, ‘fisheries’ and ‘rural development’ functions could be separate. This means that the allocated resources are not enough.
The allocation of only 8% of the budget is below what would be ideal for the sector. The budget allocation to the agriculture sector for the last three years has been consistent with the CAADP [Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme] requirements of at least 10%. The sudden drop in 2023 is a cause for concern.