WATER-ZIMBABWE
:
New Wells Protect Environment, Build Peace
Vusumuzi Sifile
SHAMVA, Zimbabwe
, Oct 15 (IPS) - Twenty years ago, Isaac Chidavaenzi would worry when his neighbours set up vegetable gardens on river banks, trying to get closer to water sources. The number of gardens on the rivers' banks has now decreased, but Chidavaenzi is even more worried.
"Vegetable gardens are no longer on the river banks as they used to be, they are now right inside the riverbed," says Chidavaenzi. "River systems have been greatly disrupted. Now it's all dry, and all the forests are gone. Rivers and streams are literally dying as humans scratch everywhere for sustenance."
Fifty years ago, five natural regions were mapped out in Zimbabwe, identifying differing levels of rainfall. Chidavaenzi's district falls in Region 2, which receives between 700 and 1000 mm of rainfall each year and is considered ideal for intensive farming. This made the area one of the best for the production of flue-cured tobacco, maize, cotton, sugar beans and coffee, relying on rainwater, with supplementary irrigation used only for winter wheat.
But as climate change takes its toll, rainfall patterns have changed drastically in the area, triggering the slow creep of farms into the very river beds. Worse, as the district's population has expanded over the years, he says, people have moved into former protected areas. In addition to clearing the area for farming, they also cut down many trees to get wood for building new huts. Combined with general changes in weather patterns, this has led to local watercourses drying up.
But the area has not been reclassified, much to Chidavaenzi’s chagrin. And because the region Shamva lies in remains ranked as being very good for agriculture, the assumption in government and among donors is that people there do not need much support. Preference is given to Regions 4 and 5, which receive little and erratic rainfall.
"The season is now shorter and precipitation volumes have decreased, compared to the time were classified as Region 2A. But despite all these changes, no-one has reclassified the area," added Chidavaenzi.
To solve the problem, Chidavaenzi established Chengaose Foundation Trust, a non-governmental organisation that is spearheading the restoration of small-scale agriculture in Shamva by drilling boreholes and sinking wells for villagers.
"With the way things were deteriorating, I thought the best would be for me to come up with a lasting solution. I realised that all the problems we face in the district have their roots in the shortage of water, and that's the problem we have to address. My approach has been to drill boreholes at homesteads. We have so far drilled four boreholes and deepened two wells," he said.
Chengaose was registered in November 2008. The organisation started mobilising funds in January, but only started the borehole project in September after receiving a $50,000 grant from the Global Environmental Facility (GEF).
Constructing boreholes at homesteads, Chidavaenzi says, will help revive agriculture in the area, which used to be among the most productive in Zimbabwe. This will go a long way to reduce the growing reliance on food aid in the area. Where a borehole is drilled, the foundation adopts one hectare of land which the farmer is assisted to intensively put it under crop production. When the farmer starts making profit, part of his or her earnings would be used for a revolving fund to construct more boreholes.
"One of the saddest things I have experienced is to see people I know to be good farmers queuing for food aid. At some point I saw old women fighting over a small bottle of cooking oil, which was being distributed by a non-governmental organisation. This kind of food aid is actually taking away people's dignity. I thought what is needed to give these people food security is to ensure they have water," said Chidavaenzi.
Through the programme, Chidavaenzi is killing two birds with one stone. He is also using water to heal the rifts caused by political violence last year.
In 2008, Shamva was greatly affected by political violence especially in the run-up to the presidential run off election. Some villagers were maimed, injured and displaced by their own neighbours. Following the constitution of an inclusive government by former political rivals, Chidavaenzi believes his programme can also play a role in national healing.
"What we have done is group the villagers into farmers' clubs. We don’t care which political party you belong to. I believe that when people are busy with constructive development, they do not have time to waste on unproductive things," he added.
The organisation’s name Chengaose means "gather all seeds".
"The aim is to ensure that all members of the community take part in sustainable development without any discrimination. We gather everyone together, regardless of political affiliation. For us what matters is the sustainability of the development we are carrying out," added Chidavaenzi.
And according to one of the beneficiaries, septuagenarian Simon Musiiwa, this is working. "We are more united than we have ever been," said Musiiwa. "Everyone is so committed to the development of our area."
Musiiwa's well was deepened from 8 metres to 25 metres, and he is confident it will now provide enough water to irrigate his one and half hectare field.
Another beneficiary, Arthur Marange, said when he struggled to get water to irrigate his vegetables, he had no option but relocate his garden right into the bed of a small river. But following the drilling of a borehole in his homestead, Marange has now removed his garden from the riverbed.
"From the new borehole, I will get enough water to expand and commercialise my garden at home," said Marange. Among others crops, he will produce beans and cabbages to supply to the Bradley Institute, a neighbouring boarding school.
Addressing the 15th Congress of the Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union (ZCFU) on October 9, Vice President Joice Mujuru didn't refer specifically to the new Chengaose project, but said it was "imperative for farmers to revamp their strategies". She encouraged farmers to embark on projects that will preserve the natural environment.
"At the current rate of destruction, there will be no farming to talk about in the next few years to come," said Mujuru. "The road to breadbasket status is not an easy one."
Finance Minister Tendai Biti told the same meeting the great potential of local farmers was hindered by bottlenecks in accessing water, equipment and other inputs. He said the government would commit more funds towards the provision of inputs to farmers, particularly their access to water.
(END/2009)
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