Harare, Zimbabwe (News of the South)-Command Agriculture is premised on a defective concept that is not compatible with civil matters and has been a complete failure according to Professor Jonathan Moyo.
Writing on social media the outspoken Higher Education Minister said the amount of money poured into Command Agriculture tallied against the hectares farmed warranted a verdict of failed.
“Command is a tried and tested military concept. It is also great in projects but in civil matters command is an oxymoron and a non-starter”
“There’s an important difference between command and policy and the latter is better than the former in the modern scheme of things”, he said.
Command Agriculture targeted 400ha but contracted 247,035ha of which 191,124ha (77%) were tilled and 153,102 (61%) were planted on.
Maize is on 1,3m ha, 1,1m is Presidential Input Scheme, 153,102,60ha is Command Agriculture and the rest is private, he said according to Moyo.
State media recently reported that over $500 million dollars had been poured into the Command Agriculture scheme.
Though the veracity of the numbers could not be ascertained the figure put against the hectarage justifies Prof Moyo’s argument that the scheme has failed.
Agriculture minister Joseph Made recently appeared before Parliament, where he told the House that 62% of land under command agriculture has the staple maize crop.
Made said fuel had been adequately distributed to farmers, however, adding the biggest problem was the shortage of fertilisers.
However other quarters have cautioned a gullible gulping of Moyo’s arguments about Command Agriculture saying it is part of the larger succession fight as VP Emmerson Mnangagwa, from the supposed opposing Lacoste camp, is the one spearheading the programme.
Moyo is reputed to belong to a rival G40 grouping in the battle to succeed President Robert Mugabe who turned 93 in February.
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