In a landmark moment for sustainable agriculture in Zimbabwe, 75 Agricultural Business Advisory Officers (ABAOs) from Chimanimani, Chipinge and Buhera Districts graduated with the Certificate of Agroecology Practice on the 9th of October 2025 in Birchenough, marking the success of a transformative training program delivered directly within their operational wards.
Spearheaded by Fambidzanai Permaculture Centre (FPC) in affiliation with Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE) together with Towards Sustainable Use of Resources Organisation (TSURO Trust, this initiative reflects a bold move toward community-rooted capacity building, ensuring that agroecological knowledge is not only taught but lived and practiced.
With the program directly and positively impacting 75 ABAOs, across Manicaland’s three districts, the biggest highlight so far has been the ward-based approach used in the training, embedding learning within the officers’ operational environments, allowing them to integrate indigenous knowledge systems, local farming challenges, and community dynamics into their learning journey.
In his key note speech, the Guest of honor, Manicaland Provincial Director in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Mr Nhamo Mudada alluded the need to urgently enhance food security and livelihoods through agroecological practices.
“The country needs to continue the urgent need to enhance food security and livelihoods while simultaneously building resilience against the undeniable impacts of climate change.
“In this context, the capacity building of the ABAOs in Agroecology is not merely an option, it is a strategic imperative that the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) correctly identifies good skills and knowledge levels as a key to food security,” he said.
Grasping hands on practice in areas like Sustainable land use and soil regeneration, water conservation Composting, organic pest management, Climate-resilient farming techniques and seed systems, the program has strengthened the ABAOs’ capability to guide farmers toward regenerative agricultural practices, increasing yields, and restoring the ecological balance.
FPC’s Executive Director, represented by the FPC Board Chairperson Professor C.T. Gadzirai, alluded to the fact that this graduation ceremony is proof of a new beginning as they are certified to become pioneers and ambassadors of sustainable agriculture.
“You are more that graduates, you are pioneers, you carry with you the knowledge, tools and responsibility to lead the agroecological revolution in the province.
“See this certificate as a license to innovate, educate and transform communities,” said Prof Gadzirai.
Highlighting the importance of education, The Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at Bindura University of Science Education, Prof. J. Masaka encouraged the ABAOs to further their studies by enrolling for a Degree in Agroecology in order for them to be fully equipped with knowledge when they are in the field.
The Graduation ceremony honoured the ABAO’s academic achievements as well as celebrate the resilience of communities that have faced environmental and economic adversity, highlighting the role of agroecology in reviving livelihoods, restoring dignity, and redefining agricultural success in Zimbabwe.
