Deputy minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Davis Marapira

GOVERNMENT is conducting feasibility studies for the construction of the proposed Runde-Tende dam in southern Chivi, Masvingo, which is expected to provide year round irrigation facility to the province.
Deputy minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Davis Marapira, said the proposed dam on the confluence of Runde and Tende rivers would provide irrigation water for nearly 30 000 hectares per annum.
“Government is planning to build another dam in Masvingo Province, the Runde-Tende Dam. It’s going to be bigger than Tokwe-Mukosi Dam, the country’s largest inland dam. The dam will supply irrigation water to arid parts of Mwenezi, Chikombedzi, Matibi and Chiredzi and can supply about 30 000 hectares with irrigation water,” Marapira told The Financial Gazette on the sidelines a breakfast meeting organised by the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce at the Harare Show last week.
“This means after the completion of the dam, the whole Lowveld will be a green belt. Currently, the Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate is undertaking feasibility studies for the project.”
Masvingo Province already has the highest dam density in the country, with more than five major dams, but the bulk of them supply water exclusively to Lowveld sugar cane plantations.
Other major dams in the province are Lake Mutirikwi, Manjirenji in Zaka, Bangalaand Muzhwi in Chivi. These supply irrigation water for Lowveld cane plantations.
The recent completion of Tokwe-Mukosi dam has raised hope that both communal and commercial farmers can harness the dam’s water to grow other crops.
Construction of Tokwe-Mukosi dam commenced in April 1998 and families and their livestock in the dam basin were moved to Chisase, Chingwizi and Masangula resettlement areas.
However, work on the dam was suspended in 1999 due to shortage of funds.
Following this period, the project went through a stop-start process from 2001 to 2005. Construction commenced in May 2011, with plans to complete the project in November 2013, with the first supply of irrigation water targeted for 2014.
The contractor was granted an extension to complete the project by August 2014 mainly because there were additional excavations on the foundations and the planned project commencement was delayed by financial constraints.
The contractor was further granted an extension from September 2014 to June 2015.
The project was completed last year.
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