To increase the country’s agricultural productivity, Chinese manufacturer and distributor of advanced agriculture machinery and technologies has introduced smart technologies to Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector .
Debont Corp, one of the companies that exhibited at this year’s edition of the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show is aiming to bridge Zimbabwe’s technology gap in the agriculture sector.
Africa Regional manager for Debont and Managing Director of China-Aid Agricultural Technology Demonstration Center (CATDC) in Zimbabwe, Li Weiwei said there is still need to speed up the adoption of new technologies in Zimbabwe.
“That’s why we are here, and we brought the machinery, and all will be tested if they are suitable for the local market requirements, and we would also want to try our best efforts to bring more high level, high standards machinery to Zimbabwe,” he said.
“Agricultural modernization will boost labor productivity and increases agricultural surplus thereby increasing incomes and improving nutrition,” he added.
Debont is a system integrator specializing in modern agricultural production processes, including providing integrated solutions in agricultural engineering, supplying agricultural equipment, contracting of agricultural projects, and operating agricultural projects.
In Zimbabwe, Debont is currently running the CATDC located at Gwebi College of Agriculture near Harare.
CATDC was established in 2011 through the China-Aid program focusing on farmer training and technical skills transfer.
The center also functions as a base of agriculture high-yield technology demonstration, agriculture, machinery and irrigation technology training and promotion, and a platform of international cooperation on agriculture between Zimbabwe and China.
Over the past 10 years, CATDC has provided training courses to more than 3,000 Zimbabwean farmers.
Agricultural activities provide employment and income for 60 to 70 percent of the population, supply about 60 percent of the raw materials required by the manufacturing sector, and contribute approximately 40 percent of total export earnings, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
For the first time in nearly two decades Zimbabwe is expecting to be corn and wheat sufficient, slashing the import bill significantly.