Story by Tamuka Charakupa
CHINHOYI-PROVINCIAL heads in Mashonaland West met this week to assess progress under the National Development Strategy One (NDS1), with the engagement highlighting key achievements and the continued need for collaboration under the whole-of-government approach.
The interface, held in Chinhoyi, provided a comprehensive review of sectoral performance as Zimbabwe accelerates its march towards Vision 2030.
One of the key milestones presented was in the agriculture sector, with winter wheat production exceeding expectations.
“On wheat production, the province has surpassed the target of 34 500 hectares by 3 % to 35 525. Our concern, however, is on the late disbursement of PIP inputs. If these were given on time, we could easily surpass our average target yield on 5.5 tonnes per hectare; however, a 5.2 tonnes per hectare target is possible,” Mashonaland West Provincial Agritex Officer, Mrs Evelyn Ndoro said.
On the tobacco front, the province is poised to benefit from the ongoing marketing season, with several contractors already operating.
“Harvesting of summer crops is tailing off, with most farmers now threshing and marketing. Tobacco marketing is ongoing, with 19 contractors buying tobacco in the past week. As a province, our mass is 97 million kilograms with a value to date of 314,357 USD. However, 23 percent of the planted area still has stalks standing. Four teams comprising TIMB, Plant Quarantine, and Agritex are on the ground in Makonde, Zvimba, and Hurungwe districts, following up with errant farmers,” Mrs Ndoro added.
However, concerns were raised in the health sector, with malaria remaining a persistent challenge. Since January, the province has recorded over 23 000 cumulative cases and 75 deaths.
“We continue to emphasise preventive care and community health outreach to reduce avoidable deaths. Makonde leads with 28 deaths, followed by Hurungwe with 22. Risk communication and community engagement activities are ongoing, including health education, distribution of IEC materials at clinics and in communities, weekly radio campaigns on Platinum FM, and mobile outreach across all districts,” said Provincial Medical Director, Dr Celestino Dhege.
Mashonaland West Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Marian Chombo, emphasised the importance of accountability and inter-departmental collaboration in accelerating NDS1 implementation.
“To realise our vision, we must foster stronger collaboration among ministries, departments, agencies, NGOs, and community stakeholders. Effective coordination is the backbone of impactful development. These meetings provide an excellent opportunity to discuss ongoing projects, explore synergies, and identify areas where resources can be shared or optimised for maximum benefit. I urge all provincial heads to take full responsibility for their roles. Delegating issues that require your direct attention to juniors weakens our collective decision-making process,” she said.
Mashonaland West, the country’s third-largest contributor to GDP, is positioning itself to lead by example in national transformation as Zimbabwe journeys towards an upper-middle-income economy by 2030.
