Extension

Vision

Prosperous farmers engaged in diversified agricultural enterprises, meeting household and national food
and nutrition security needs, significantly contributing to industrial raw materials and exports.

Mission Statement

To promote sustainable, competitive and viable agricultural production by providing technical,
extension, advisory and coordination services.

Mandate

Through its specialist branches ,provincial and district offices, the mandate of AGRITEX is to provide
technical and advisory services, regulatory services, farmer training, food technology information(
including post harvesting processing and product development), as well as the dissemination of
technologies and providing market oriented extension for sustainable farming.

Values

AGRITEX is guided by six core values of integrity, responsiveness, dedication, transparency,
professionalism and innovativeness.

Integrity

• We commit to discharge our duties diligently and honestly, dealing in a fair manner with all stakeholders.

Responsiveness

• We are sensitive to the changing needs of our clients and commit to react with urgency to any emerging agricultural threats.

Dedication

• We are diligent in the pursuit of our mandate, and endeavor to contribute to household and national food and nutrition security.

Transparency

• We are accountable to our stakeholders and staff for resource use and results, dealing openly in all areas of our mandate.

Professionalism

• We commit to uphold the highest standards of proficiency and ethics in delivering quality service to our clients.

Innovativeness

• We are highly creative and constantly look for new ways of providing services to our clients.

Functions of the Department of AGRITEX

The functions of the Department of Agricultural, Technical and Extension Services are as follows:

1. Training of farmers
2. Disseminating and promoting the adoption of new technologies through on-farm trials and demonstrations, field days, agriculture shows, exchange visits, farmer field schools and technology fairs.
3. Monitoring crop and livestock production trends and provision of regular reports to the Ministry and stakeholders.
4. Provision of market related information.
5. Mobilizing farmers for targeted production.
6. Conducting crop and livestock assessments for early warning.
7. Collating agricultural production information; and
8. Providing interface between researchers and farmers
9. Provision of livestock extension, technical and advisory services to the farming community.
10. Provision of regulatory services to the livestock industry.

Crop Production Branches

To fulfil its mandate, the department is operationalised through its Crop and Livestock Branches

Training and Information Branch

The branch aims to ensure effective agricultural extension by providing credible and competent staff through in-service training and the provision of information to farmers and other stakeholders in the agricultural industry. The Training and Information branch is responsible for:

1. Training and training administration of farmers and staff
2. Coordinating the National Master Farmer Program
3. Training needs assessment
4. Curriculum development for trainers
5. Editing and publication of departmental magazines, flyers advisory notes, manuals and technical papers
6. Information storage and retrieval
7. Mass media and information dissemination
8. Documentation and collation of publications
9. Desktop publishing of information generated by the department.
10. Coordination of major programs such as ZITF, Harare Agricultural Show and World Food Day commemorations

Horticulture Branch

The branch works closely with horticultural crop research programs and is responsible for the collation and dissemination of information. This includes information on:

1. Vegetable Crops
2. Fruit crops
3. Flowers

Agribusiness and Marketing Services

The branch functions are as follows:

1. Operating a monitoring and evaluation section for the socio- economic baseline survey, monitoring and evaluating studies.
2. Providing farm management and marketing services
3. Participating in the National Early Warning Unit (NEWU) for food security assessments and vulnerability research.
4. Operating an agribusiness unit that recommends value addition options at farm level, advises various marketing process such as pricing, packaging, advertising and distribution of products.

Land Use Planning

This branch functions at farm level and its duties include:

1. Production of farm level land use maps and plans
2. Compiling farm suitability reports
3. Pegging and demarcation of farms
4. Dissemination of appropriate technology on land use
5. Providing advice on land use issues

Crops Branch

The branch works closely with research programs and is responsible for collation and dissemination of information. This includes information on the following:

1. Tobacco
2. Large grains (maize)
3. Cotton
4. Agro-forestry
5. Soybeans, sunflower)
6. Pulses (cowpea, Bambara nuts, dry beans)
7. Root Crops (cassava, sweet potatoes)
8. Wheat
9. Conservation Agriculture.
10. Small Grains (millet, sorghum)
11. Oil seeds (groundnuts)
12. And any new crops developed for production by farmers.
13. Conduct crop surveys for early warning

LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION

Large stock (Beef and Dairy)

The beef and dairy unit is responsible for the following:

1. Promoting appropriate and efficient production technologies to beef and dairy farmers
2. Monitoring production trends in the beef and dairy sector
3. Providing developmental services: pasture seed multiplication, large stock (beef and dairy) multiplication,
4. Designing and implementing drought mitigation strategies for beef and dairy
5. Designing livestock production models for beef and dairy.
6. Designing, implementing and monitoring of beef and dairy projects
7. Training extension staff, farmers and other stakeholders in modern animal husbandry (beef and dairy)
8. Facilitating organization and running of beef and dairy field days, shows and fairs.
9. Setting up beef and dairy demonstration plots

Small stock (sheep, goats, pigs, poultry)

This is responsible for the following:

1. Promoting appropriate and efficient small stock production technologies to farmers.
2. Monitoring production trends for small livestock.
3. Providing developmental services: pasture seed multiplication, small livestock multiplication
4. Designing and implementing drought mitigation strategies or small livestock.
5. Designing small livestock production models.
6. Designing, implementing and monitoring small livestock projects
7. Training extension staff, farmers and other stakeholders in modern small livestock husbandry.
8. Facilitating organization and running of small livestock field days, shows and fairs.
9. Setting up fish farming demonstration plots

Meat and Livestock grading unit

The core function is.

1. To classify and grade carcasses in abattoirs and live animals in communal areas.
2. Data collection and analysis on carcass and livestock classification and grading by sex and age as well as quality.

Fisheries Unit (Aquaculture and dam fisheries)

The function of the unit is to:

1. Promoting appropriate and efficient fish production technologies to farmers.
2. Monitoring fish production trends.
3. Providing development services such as fish stocking and dam surveys.
4. Designing aquaculture and dam fisheries production models.
5. Designing, implementing and monitoring of aquaculture and dam fishery projects.
6. Training extension staff, farmers and other stakeholders in modern aquaculture and dam fishery projects.
7. Facilitating organization and running of aquaculture and dam fisheries field days, shows and fairs.
8. Setting up fish farming demonstration sites

AGRITEX special projects

The department of AGRITEX is implementing special farmer projects with support from development partners. Below is the list of projects:

1. Smallholder Horticulture Empowerment and Promotion Project (SHEP) (2019 – 2023) supported by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
2. Zimbabwe Agriculture Growth Program (ZAGP) funded by the European Union.

a. Zimbabwe Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Services (ZAKIS)
b. Poultry, value chain

1. Small grains Project (2019 – 2020) financed by Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and World Food Program (WFP).
2. Nutrition Sensitive Agriculture (FAO)

Contact Details
AGRITEX HEAD OFFICE
No 1 Borrowdale Road
Ngungunyani Building
Box CY 2505
HARARE
TEL:04 794381-3