Story by Farai Gwaze

The need to equip farmers to ride above the impact of climate change topped the agenda at the Southern Africa Trade Investment Summit in Harare this Thursday.

The summit comes in the wake of the adverse effects of climate change which have impacted farming activities across the globe and the SADC region is not leaving anything to chance in ensuring that agriculture remains sustainable.

The summit was therefore an opportunity for farmers from across the country to share ideas on approaching agriculture as a business in the face of climate change.

A farmer, Ms Joana Mwaurayeni, said: “I have been into farming since 2014 using borehole water for my farming and I employ about six workers in horticulture and four in poultry, specialising in broiler and layers. It’s been a difficult journey but with learning experience, we decided to attend the SAATIS programme.”

Organisation of Women in International Trade president, Ms Buhlebenkosi Nyathi said, “I see the summit benefiting women in agribusiness. I see it being a good anchor for women agri-preneurs, giving them the opportunity to open up to their challenges and being in a platform where they can be heard and addressed, helping us to foster their business outside of the borders of Zimbabwe and also as a tool to address SDG 5.”

The summit is being held in collaboration with the SADC Secretariat through its ancillary bodies to ensure climate proofing models are adopted in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Professor Jean-Marie Kileshye Onema, Head of WaterNet also noted, “We are very much involved in this summit so that we take stock of the current agricultural practices and the use of water that is involved, but more importantly, one of the realisations is to strengthen the capacity not only of the people on the ground, but of the entire chain as well. You want to build a capacity so that, ultimately, the farmer on the ground can benefit from advances that we are having in SAATIS.”

“We are in partnership with the African Continental Free Trade Area, so instead of focusing on the market in their countries, they now have a market of 1.3 billion people. So that’s what we are doing with this event. We also have opportunities for insurance and funding, understanding that funding is a big issue for small holder farmer,” said Zunde Group chairperson, Mr Makuni Ganya.

The three-day summit which kicked off on Wednesday ends this Friday.