How Climate-Smart Farming Is Helping Rural Zimbabwe Face Drought and Water Scarcity

Redacción HC
24/09/2025

As southern Zimbabwe faces increasingly erratic rainfall and frequent droughts, smallholder farmers are seeking ways to protect their harvests and livelihoods. A recent peer-reviewed study published in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems explores how rural farmers in the Masvingo district are adopting climate-smart agriculture (CSA) to counter chronic water shortages and safeguard food security.

This in-depth analysis by Thandiwe Annastacia Mpala and Mulala Danny Simatele sheds light on local strategies—combining traditional knowledge and technical training—that are helping communities adapt to climate change and sustain crop yields.

Climate Challenges Threatening Food Security

Zaka, a semi-arid district of Masvingo province, relies heavily on rain-fed subsistence farming. Increasing climate variability has shortened rainy seasons and depleted water resources, causing sharp declines in crop productivity and undermining household food security. Farmers are compelled to adapt to unpredictable rainfall and declining soil fertility, often with limited financial and technical resources.

Participatory Research with Local Farmers

The authors conducted a qualitative participatory study involving 60 farmers affiliated with the Zimbabwe Super Seeds (ZSS) program. Using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, they gathered detailed narratives from both rain-fed and irrigated farmers across 10 wards of Zaka. The researchers then performed a thematic analysis to identify the most widely adopted CSA practices and farmers’ perceptions of their effectiveness.

This bottom-up approach provided a nuanced understanding of how smallholders experience climate stress and which adaptation strategies they find most practical.

Key Climate-Smart Practices on the Ground

One standout innovation is Pfumvudza, or potholing—digging small 15 × 15 cm holes to concentrate water and nutrients around each plant. According to farmers, this simple technique can double maize yields, even in years of erratic rainfall.

Other widely adopted practices include:

• Rainwater harvesting and channeling to store water for use during dry spells.
• Early-maturing, drought-tolerant seed varieties, which reduce the risk of crop failure when rainy seasons are short.
• Soil fertility management, such as targeted fertilizer application and ridge formation to improve water retention.

One farmer reported that switching to early-maturing seeds increased his grain harvest from 50 kg to 100 kg—a striking illustration of the potential gains.

Barriers to Widespread Adoption

Despite the promise of these practices, the study identifies key obstacles:

• Crop dependence: Only 35 % of farmers diversify beyond maize, leaving many vulnerable to single-crop failure.
• High input costs and limited credit: Expensive seeds and fertilizers, combined with scarce financing, hinder long-term adoption.
• Insufficient technical support: Although ZSS training is vital, it relies heavily on donor funding and lacks guaranteed continuity.

The authors emphasize that without sustained extension services and affordable access to drought-tolerant seeds, the initial gains of CSA could be difficult to maintain.

Policy Recommendations with Global Relevance

To strengthen resilience, the researchers recommend:

1. Investing in farmer training on CSA techniques, particularly for vulnerable rain-fed communities.
2. Integrating local knowledge into national climate-adaptation policies to improve community buy-in.
3. Ensuring affordable access to drought-resistant seeds and micro-credit, enabling smallholders to scale up CSA practices.

These measures directly support the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on zero hunger (SDG 2) and climate action (SDG 13).

Lessons Beyond Zimbabwe

The strategies identified in this research have relevance far beyond southern Africa. Semi-arid regions of Latin America—such as the Peruvian and Bolivian highlands or the dry tropics of northern Chile—face similar rainfall variability. Techniques like micro-catchment water harvesting, pothole planting, and early-maturing crop varieties could be adapted to these environments, provided that programs respect local crop diversity and traditional knowledge.

Building Long-Term Agricultural Resilience

This study demonstrates that combining technical innovation with local wisdom is essential to safeguarding food security under climate stress. Climate-smart agriculture not only boosts yields today but also lays the groundwork for long-term rural resilience.

Topics of interest

Climate