Crop innovations key to industrialisation and food systems transformations | CPT PPP Coverage

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Elton Manguwo

WITH Government backing agriculture to anchor the country’s industrialisation programme, researchers have validated their concurrence by urging smallholder farmers to adopt value addition and business innovations to grow agricultural value chains.

In his keynote address at the ‘Convergence of Agritech and Business Innovation to Develop Agriculture Value Chains’ workshop held in Harare yesterday, Professor Edmore Gasura of the University of Zimbabwe innovation centre said innovations could assist farmers earn more revenue from farming activities through growing their customer bases.

“The roping in of modern business concepts in the agriculture sector will ease the doing of commerce,” he said.

One of the critical touchpoints across the National Development Schedule 1 (NDS1) and by extension, Vision 2030, is to industrialise, which can be achieved through value addition of products.

Prof Gasura highlighted the need for farmers to adopt the blue ocean strategy, which emphasises on simultaneous pursuit of differentiation and low costs to open up a new market space and create new demand.

“It is about creating and capturing uncontested market space, thereby making competition irrelevant. It is based on the view that market boundaries and industrial structure are not a given and can be reconstructed by the actions and beliefs of industry players,” he said.

The agricultural sector is the backbone of the of the economy as 61 percent of the country’s population is involved in farming therefore it is key that the sector remains competitive and innovative.

“Agritech innovations allow businesses to be more profitable, efficient, safer, unique, competitive and more environmentally friendly,” observed Prof Gasura highlighting how value addition of agricultural produce can address sustainability and efficiency in the farming business.

The Government introduced the import substitution thrust that seeks to empower local manufacturers and producers to produce that which can be consumed by the industry.

“There is a very big gap in agriculture value addition and the environment is open for participation,” said Prof Gasura.

The thrust of value addition and innovations is aimed at propelling the Government’s devolution agenda and rural industrialisation while promoting employment creation.

He added that modern information, technology and communication could assist to shorten the agro-supply value chain by aggregating markets, connecting farmers to consumers of their products.

The Government is urging farmers to take farming as business by transitioning from subsistence to farming for surplus and commerce thus realising the agriculture and food systems transformation strategy.