By Tavonga Munyanyi
Mhangami Nutrition Garden won the Shurugwi South’s first ever Garden Competitions, held at Chachacha Business Center on November 23 and was sponsored by local Member of Parliament Wilson Mhuri who was guest-of-honor at the event.
Speaking at the event Zanu PF Shurugwi District Coordinating Committee (DCC) chairperson Shepherd Mudhara said this event aligns with National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) and thanked the MP for sponsoring it.
“This event aligns with NDS 1 which seeks to create a prosperous and empowered upper middle income society by 2030. One of the key pillars is food security which aims to improve food availability, access and utilization.
“I would like to thank the MP for organizing this competition in Shurugwi, they should continue in the following years as this unites people of Shurugwi South,” said Mudhara.
In his speech Mhuri encouraged farmers to take farming as a business so they could boost their livelihoods.
“I want to thank and encourage farmers to transform farming into a business so as to generate vast income. Money comes from the soil, our farm products should not rot in our houses; you must sell, get income and create employment opportunities,” said Mhuri.
Mhangami set a shining example with its outstanding nutrition garden, which has become a model for other farmers to follow.
The garden which was established in 1994 has been meticulously maintained by farmers, showcasing a remarkable commitment to good standards and it boasts with an impressive array of vegetables and cereals.
Speaking to TellZim News after the event Mhangami Nutrition Garden Chairperson Sifikile, Sibanda expressed her excitement for farmer’s performance.
“I’m very thrilled with our colleagues’ sacrifice and commitment which brought success. We have water shortages as our major obstacle as we are running our farming project without a borehole, our main source of water was an open well which was running dry due to severe drought but we are making it.
“Every member of our garden was carrying water using buckets for irrigation purposes and so we deserve to win this,” said Sibanda.
She thanked Agricultural Extension Officers for imparting valuable farming knowledge which led to the garden producing best results.
“I want to thank Agricultural Extension Officers who spent ample time imparting valuable farming knowledge to us, sharing techniques on crop rotation and soil conservation.
“This aligns with our mantra ‘Njere muShurugwi moto unogokwa’ (Knowledge in Shurugwi is a spark that ignites from the flames of others,” she said.
Sibanda applauded MP Mhuri for rendering assistance to Mhangami Nutrition Garden.
“I’m very happy to see positive changes at our garden, our MP gave us three bags of cement to construct a toilet. His efforts to provide necessities have not gone unnoticed as the garden is transforming lives,” she said.
In a side interview, Mhuri said the district has passionate farmers who are plagued by water challenges.
“Shurugwi South has passionate farmers who are affected by water shortages. I will work tirelessly to ease these water woes through drilling boreholes so as to curb water shortage in nutrition gardens, adequate water supply also promote good sanitation for our farmers.
“Another challenge is of poor road networks that are affecting farmers as they are struggling to transport their produce to the market. I will work towards improving road networks challenge, there is need to construct roads for the benefit of farmers,” he said.
Nutrition Gardens which qualified for this competition include Takaza, Tambenevhu, Simba maoko, Devon, Limukhani, Matigonera, Rimaugute, Banga, Vimbanayi , Toziva , Mwana Mwana and Rudo.
Rudo Garden came second, Rimaugute on third position and Limukhani came fourth.
Mhangami received 8kg of variety seeds which included 2kg maize, 2kg cowpeas, 2kg sunflower and 2kg sorghum from Agriculture Rural Development Authority (ARDA), a toilet and a solarized borehole will be added to the Garden as part of their awards.
Limukhani, Rudo and Rimaugute went away with 6kg of variety seeds each from ARDA.
