By Margaret Kamba 

Cotton farmers in Zimbabwe have called on the relevant authorities to develop the areas from which the white gold is produced.

Speaking during an interview cotton farmer as well as Midlands Province Chairman Cde Edson Chiherenge Chakanyuka said there is need to implement strategies that will ensure the development of these cotton producing communities.

"Cotton which is what we call white gold is the crop that some of our communities were blessed with and has seen many of us and our children educated through it. Because it is an important crop which earns the country foreign currency, there is need to employ strategies to help develop the industry and the communities in which the crop is grown," Cde Chakanyuka said.

Below are some of his suggestions to relevant authorities in order to see an improved cotton industry:

1.Due to climate change, the crop needs to be put under irrigation just as tobacco, wheat and maize are, so that we have cotton economic zones which produce targeted tonnes on identified Cotton producing farms.

2.As cotton farmers we should not be just farmers who have no idea what becomes of the crop we have produced. For this reason we request that ginneries and refineries be housed in cotton producing communities so that more employment is created and people can benefit from their own local resources.

3.2024 is a drought year which means that the crop produced is far less, it would be a noble move to increase producer prices so that the farmers are able to immensely benefit from their resources.

4.We request to have our roads rehabilitated by companies who come and buy our white gold because of the type of transportation they use to ferry the lint to their ginneries outside our communities result in bad roads.

5.Packaging materials must be produced locally to avoid any form of side marketing as the farmers end up selling their produce to companies who would not have assisted during the whole process.

6.Advance payments must be resuscitated as they help the farmer during the cotton production process.

7.There should be a cotton farmers database for the Presidential Input scheme so as to avoid the participation of farmers who just collect inputs for other uses other than cotton. 

8.Feedback to farmers is crucial for them to understand the important role they play by growing the white gold.

Cotton is mostly produced in Muzarabani, Gokwe, Checheche and Chiredzi among other areas.