Story by Tamuka Charakupa
MASHONALAND West Province is on course to meet its grain storage requirements, with construction of the modernised Mhangura Grain Marketing Board (GMB) depot set for completion early next year.
The development of the Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered smart storage facility comes after years of post-harvest losses, largely caused by poor moisture management and transport bottlenecks, as farmers were forced to rely on the distant Lion’s Den depot.
Local farmers have welcomed the project with optimism.
“We are excited with the progress of this project given the challenges we have been facing, particularly high transport costs when ferrying our produce to Lion’s Den, which is about 50 kilometres away. This is also a motivation for us as farmers to up our game and fill this facility up,” said farmer Clemence Mvurayachena.
“Our produce was being turned away because we could not meet the required 12.5 percent moisture content to sell to the GMB. Now we have hope to produce all year round, knowing that our crops are safe and can be sold in whatever state,” added another farmer, Lemumba Mtapapanda.
Once complete, the facility will offer a storage capacity of 56 thousand metric tonnes, equipped with AI systems for grain sorting, drying and moisture control, providing farmers with a one-stop post-harvest service.
“Construction is progressing well and we’re on track. Our target is to have this facility up and running in time for the harvests of the summer cropping season. What makes this facility unique is the integration of Artificial Intelligence systems, from automated grain sorting and moisture detection to temperature control. It is designed to minimise losses and ensure quality preservation from the moment the grain is received,” explained Mashonaland West Provincial Mechanisation Engineer, Engineer Ignatius Ruroza.
Mashonaland West Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Marian Chombo, said focus is now on boosting value addition within the agro-processing value chain.
“We are now looking for increased investments in the agro-processing sector, given that we now have enhanced and improved storage facilities. We should leverage on these developments and focus on value addition,” she said.
With technology driving agricultural transformation, the province and the nation at large is poised for increased productivity in line with the zero-hunger national food security targets.
