The ongoing Kutsaga circus meetings are set to propel development and growth in the tobacco industry by providing essential learning platforms fostering collaborations and knowledge exchange.
Kutsaga public relations and communications officer Mr Tatenda Mugabe yesterday said the purpose of the meetings was to take the latest findings from agricultural research and extension work and share them directly with farmers and growers in an accessible format.
"This knowledge exchange helps ensure growers have the most up-to-date information to improve their farming operations and productivity in a sustainable manner by allowing direct engagements with growers of all categories - small, medium and large-scale. It enables us to disseminate the latest agricultural research findings and recommendations," said Mr Mugabe.
A key aspect of the Kutsaga Circus Meetings is the platform they provide for tobacco growers to interact with specialist researchers from the research station. These sessions allow growers to voice their experiences, problems and challenges they face in their day-to-day operations.
"By creating this open dialoguing, the meetings enable a two-way exchange of information and insights. Growers can share their on-the-ground experiences and perspectives, while researchers gain invaluable first-hand feedback to guide their work. This collaborative approach helps ensure that the research and innovations coming out of Kutsaga are closely aligned with the real-world experiences of tobacco farmers," said Mr Mugabe.
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Through these interactive sessions, growers have the chance to directly shape the research agenda and developmental priorities at Kutsaga. It is a unique opportunity for the voices of tobacco producers to be heard and their concerns to be addressed by the very experts tasked with supporting the industry's growth and modernisation.
Kutsaga Research has hosted a series of meetings in the Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, and Mashonaland West provinces. These meetings have attracted huge turnouts, with an attendance of 163 large-scale tobacco growers and 1 474 small-scale growers recorded to have attended.
"By hosting the meetings across these three provinces, Kutsaga has been able to reach and engage with a diverse group of crop producers - both large commercial operations and smaller-scale farmers," said Mr Mugabe.
He added that the high attendance figures of over 1 600 growers demonstrated the strong interest among tobacco growing communities to interact with the Kutsaga research team.
"This collaborative approach between the research teams and tobacco growers is instrumental in driving productivity gains and growth in Zimbabwe's tobacco sector," said Mr Mugabe.
The development comes at a time Government is pushing for enhanced production and high tobacco yields in line with the dream to achieve a US$5 billion tobacco industry by 2025.
"It is our hope that the tobacco industry will achieve the targeted $5 billion value through improved performance and productivity from tobacco growers," added Mr Mugabe.
