Zimbabwe army takes over food security

Zimbabwe army takes over food security

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By MacDonald Dzirutwe

ZIMBABWE defence forces have taken over food security to shore up falling production as farmers struggle to raise output, partly crippled by President Robert Mugabe's land seizures.

The southern African nation has suffered food shortages since 2001 after being affected by drought and disruptions to farming blamed largely on the government's seizure of white-owned commercial farms for landless blacks.

Critics say the black farmers have been hamstrung by shortages of inputs such as fuel, seed and fertiliser while the majority lack the skills to produce on a commercial scale.

Agriculture Minister Joseph Made said personnel from the army, air force and police had been enlisted to take charge of food security by producing the staple maize and other key grains while taking over the harvesting and distribution of key crops.

In the past year the army has been involved in low-key production of maize and wheat but Made said on Monday the police and air force had also joined in and would plant 300,000 hectares of grain crops this season, which starts in six weeks.

"Defence forces are not out there to cause problems," Made told the official Herald newspaper. "We want all (government) departments to cooperate and other civilians to pick skills and knowledge imparted by them. We want their brains and resources."

The state grain agency, headed by an ex-military officer, is struggling to collect maize from farmers because of a severe fuel crunch. The agency has enlisted the army's help.

Farming groups said on Monday the involvement by security forces would compliment their efforts in resuscitating agriculture, used to be the biggest foreign currency earner.

"This will not only guarantee food security but it is also meant to consolidate the government's land reform programme," Silas Hungwe, head of the Zimbabwe Farmers' Union told Reuters.

The central bank says its fight against inflation will fail unless the country addresses food security. Food accounts for a third of the average price basket used to calculate inflation.

At 1,200 percent, Zimbabwe's inflation rate is the highest in the world and is the clearest sign of an eight-year recession also marked by shortages of foreign currency, fuel, electricity and food.

The United States-based food monitoring group Fewsnet said in its latest food security update that transport problems faced by the Grain Marketing Board had resulted in the price of maize going up by 114 percent in the deficit areas.

The group said the country had enough maize seed for the 2006/7 planting season, but shortages of fuel and fertilizer could hit production.

"Fertilisers are likely to be in shortly. If the fuel shortages persist, farmers will have very little fuel to power their equipment, and land preparation for 2006/7 will be seriously compromised," Fewsnet said in its report seen by Reuters. - Reuters
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