Agric Sector Grows to US$10bn on Better Rains

Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector hit US$10.3 billion in 2025, a 74% jump driven by better rains, irrigation, and crop recovery (image source)

Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector surged to an estimated US$10.3 billion in 2025, a 73.9% increase from US$5.6 billion in 2024, driven by improved rainfall, expanded irrigation, and strong recoveries in tobacco, wheat, blueberries, and livestock, according to Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube. The rebound, he said at the ZANU-PF Annual People’s Conference in Mutare, positions agriculture as a renewed engine of growth, rural incomes, and export potential.

Government figures show household food security improved from 44% to 85% in 2025, helped by input support programmes and the Pfumvudza/Intwasa smallholder schemes, which lifted yields across staple and cash crops. Officials attribute the gains to a combination of favourable rains, input access, and infrastructure improvements in irrigation and mechanisation.

“Favourable rains returned viability to marginal lands and smallholder plots,” — Dr. Angeline Chikafa, Zimbabwe Institute of Agricultural Innovation

The recovery marks a shift from drought-induced relief dependency to market-driven production and export readiness. Afreximbank has extended financing for fertiliser and input supply lines, while regional markets are being targeted for surplus maize and tobacco exports. Analysts highlight that policy coordination — including input subsidies, irrigation expansion, price-support mechanisms, and maize import restrictions — has improved the sector’s viability.

However, experts warn that sustaining the boom requires structural resilience. Liquidity constraints, unreliable power, and limited cold-chain logistics for perishables could slow growth. Analysts urge sustained investment in storage, mechanisation, and export certification to consolidate gains and ensure compliance with regional standards.

Agriculture has historically been Zimbabwe’s backbone, anchoring employment and exports before collapsing in the late 1990s due to economic instability. The 2025 rebound, observers say, is an opportunity to restore the sector’s role in national development — if favourable weather and financing momentum persist.

The coming season will determine whether these gains become structural. Stakeholders will monitor export regulations, fertiliser supply chains, and private-sector investment in value addition. If stability continues, the US$10.3 billion milestone may represent not just recovery, but the foundation of a multi-year transformation in Zimbabwean agriculture.