OPERATION MAGUTA

BACKBONE OF ZIMABABWE

    OPERATION MAGUTA: ACHIEVEMENTS

Operation Maguta was launched by the Honourable Vice President, Cde T.R.J Mujuru on 7 November 2005 in conformity with Cabinet’s decision of 1 November 2005 to boost food security and consolidate national strategic grain reserves. The nation’s food security was threatened by a combination of recurrent droughts, unwarranted economic sanctions and the transitory effects of the historic land reform programme. Boosting food security would reduce reliance on food imports and hence leverage more foreign currency to the productive sectors critical to the national economic turnaround programme.

Operation Maguta is being spearheaded by the Zimbabwe Defence Forces in line with their constitutional obligation of providing assistance to Civil Ministries and Departments in times of crisis and need. The programme is not a replacement but an augmentation to-on going national agricultural activities.

Despite being castigated by Zimbabwe’s detractors as a failure and   signaling the intensification of the militarization of the agricultural sector, Operation Maguta in fact led to efficient land use and greater agricultural productivity through utilizing land that could have been lying idle. As a result, a huge food gap was closed, effectively saving foreign exchange for other priority sectors of the economy. In its unwavering support of the national agriculture mechanization support programme, Operation Maguta acquired a variety of specialized agricultural equipment and repaired ARDA’s combine harvesters, tractors, disc harrows and other farm implements. It is also imperative to note that selected A1, A2 and other institutional irrigation infrastructure was rehabilitated. Allegations that the Operation mismanaged irrigation schemes are therefore baseless and unfounded. In fact, Operation Maguta injected a sense of seriousness and urgency within the farming community, revealed inadequacies and the unavoidable requirement for serious professionalism and forward planning within the agricultural sector. The District Development Fund [DDF], National Railways of Zimbabwe [NRZ] and some farm equipment manufacturing companies namely Bain, Farmec and Hasst realized increased viability as a result of the programme.

Identified underutilized ARDA farms form the nucleus of the programme from which control of operations on all institutional and small scale farms in each area is exercised. The farms are then grouped into   clusters to form a single estate for easy provision of tillage, planting and management services. At Valley Irrigation Scheme in Matabeleland South and Dalkith Estate in Mashonaland Central, the cluster concept not only facilitated the accessibility of common user facilities on the farms but also provided logistical simplicity and easy mobilization of labour. This has seen an increase in agricultural productivity at these estates.

ARDA is the biggest farmer for Operation Maguta in that proceeds from the entire yield at the estates belong to the former. The Operation does not charge ARDA for tillage services since they use their own equipment. Recovery action is only made for fuel and other inputs provided.

In its unwavering support of the national agriculture mechanization support programme, Operation Maguta acquired a variety of specialized agricultural equipment in line with the food security promotion programme. These include combine harvesters, tractors, disc harrows and many other farm implements. The table below aptly shows the seriousness of Operation Maguta in mechanizing the agricultural sector.

EQUIPMENT PURCHASED BY OPERATION MAGUTA-2005/2006 SUMMER SEASON.

EQUIPMENT PURCHASED BY OPERATION MAGUTA- 2007

The Reverse Bank of Zimbabwe also bought 42 tractors, 42 Disc harrows and 42 ploughs in support of Operation Maguta. The Operation managed to capacitate ARDA by carrying out major repairs and maintenance to its tractor fleet and combine harvesters, which had endured a protracted stint of neglect. By 30 January 2007, the programme had managed to successfully repair ARDA’s 12 combine harvesters and eight tractors.

The mechanization programme thus capacitated Operation Maguta to surpass its tillage target of 30 000 hectares by 362 hectares during the 2006 winter wheat season. The expected yield of four tonnes per hectare was also achieved. As a result, 109 446 tonnes of wheat were delivered to the  Grain Marketing Board despite considerable hectarege being written off due to veldt fires and quelea birds menace. Farmers also retained substantial quantities of wheat for their upkeep thereby boosting food security at household level.
The country’s overall yield would not have been the same if it was not for the concerted efforts by Operation Maguta, AREX and National Parks and Wildlife Management staff who contained the quelea birds’ menace. Apart from resuscitating some of ARDA’s unserviceable irrigation systems at estates like Middle Sabi and Transau, Operation Maguta was also involved in numerous equally successful irrigation rehabilitation programmes as the table below aptly captures.

List of Projects that benefited under Operation Maguta, Quick Fix Project Phase 1

Therefore, in the light of the above revelations, Zimbabwe’s detractors who portray Operation Maguta’s irrigation rehabilitation programme as a failure are exposed.
Since the inception of Operation Maguta, the Central Mechanical Engineering Department [CMED], Agriculture and Rural Development Authority (ARDA), the District Development Fund (DDF), National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) and many farm equipment manufacturing companies namely Bain, Hasst and Farmec immensely benefited and realized increased viability. Payment, maintenance and refurbishment of DDF tractors and CMED vehicles is done periodically by Operation Maguta thereby capacitating these parastatals and enhancing their commercial viability. The National Railways of Zimbabwe also benefited immensely through the transportation of bulk inputs meant for Operation Maguta. Bain Limited, an agricultural equipment manufacturing company, opened a new branch in Chinhoyi through funds from purchases made to a greater extent by Operation Maguta, thus bringing its services closer to the farming community.

Operation Maguta also led to efficient land use and greater agricultural productivity through utilizing land that could have been lying idle. By January 2007, Operation Maguta had delivered 336 285 metric tones of grain from its various projects nationwide to the GMB whilst during the 2006/2007 agricultural season, 264 127 hectares of previously underutilized land countrywide was put under maize and sorghum production.