Govt expands smallholder farmers’ insurance

LIVINGSTONE MARUFU

Government and its partners have expanded the farmer’s basket agricultural insurance initiative to 60 rural districts ahead of the 2026/27 summer cropping season, in a move aimed at shielding vulnerable smallholder farmers from climate change-induced risks, Business Times can report.

The nationwide rollout comes as weather experts warn that an El Niño-induced drought could affect Zimbabwe and several other Southern African countries during the upcoming agricultural season.

The expansion follows the success of a pilot programme implemented in Goromonzi District, Mashonaland East Province, a few years ago.

Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube recently said the pilot phase had demonstrated that the insurance model could be replicated across the country, a development expected to strengthen rural livelihoods and support economic growth.

“We now want to extend smallholder farmer insurance to all the 60 districts of the country following its success in Goromonzi and several other districts. The insurance scheme comes at an opportune time as the El Niño phenomenon is expected during the next farming season,” Professor Ncube said.

Agriculture remains a critical pillar of Zimbabwe’s economy, contributing more than 12% to gross domestic product and providing livelihoods for millions of people.

The sector has experienced significant fluctuations over the past three years, largely driven by weather conditions. Following a drought-induced contraction in 2024, agriculture rebounded strongly with growth of about 24% in 2025 before moderating to around 5% growth in 2026.

However, the sector is expected to come under renewed pressure in 2027 due to the anticipated drought.

The Farmer’s Basket programme is designed to protect smallholder farmers against early and late dry spells, as well as other production risks that result in reduced yields.

During the 2024 El Niño-induced drought, each member of insured groups in Goromonzi received payouts of US$65.

Prior to the nationwide expansion, the programme had already been rolled out in Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Mashonaland Central, Manicaland, Midlands, Masvingo, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South provinces.

Agricultural expert Edward Dune said the insurance scheme was an important tool for safeguarding smallholder farming enterprises against natural disasters, operational errors and other risks.

“Now that droughts are becoming more frequent, we need to ensure that every farmer in the country, regardless of size, is insured. However, insurers themselves must become more responsive to agriculture, particularly smallholder farming.

“They need to develop products that are affordable and suitable for the smallholder sector so that farmers can fully enjoy the benefits of insurance,” Dune said.

He noted that many insurance companies still focus largely on large-scale commercial farmers.

“They have products tailored for large-scale farmers and very little for smallholder farmers. Therefore, we need broader cover for the smallholder sector so that these farmers do not lose out,” he added.

Dune urged insurers to undertake demonstration projects showing communities how insured farmers receive compensation when disasters strike, arguing that such initiatives would help raise awareness and encourage wider adoption of agricultural insurance.

Professor Ncube said government recognised the need to ease the financial burden faced by smallholder farmers and was prepared to subsidise insurance premiums to improve access to risk-mitigation products.

“The subsidy will help make agricultural insurance more accessible and ensure that more farmers benefit from these innovative products,” he said.

Ncube noted that agriculture remains the backbone of the economy and that smallholder farmers are central to the success of the initiative.