The severe floods that affected the southern Mozambican province of Gaza this year caused damage to the Lower Limpopo Irrigation Scheme estimated at 23 million meticais (about 360,000 US dollars at the current exchange rate).
The Lower Limpopo irrigation system spans a physical area of 70,000 hectares across the Gaza districts of Xai-Xai, Limpopo, Chongoene, and Chibuto, with 17,000 hectares fully developed with modern infrastructure.
According to the coordinator of the scheme management, Isabel Sitoe, the floods submerged the entire infrastructure-backed area, wiping out more than 8,000 hectares of established crops.
Rice was the hardest-hit crop, accounting for about 4,200 hectares of the total loss. Beyond crop destruction, the damage to supporting infrastructure is critical.
“The floods caused siltation along 735 kilometers of canals and drainage ditches, damaged approximately 200 kilometers of access roads, and seriously compromised the protective dyke”, she said.
She explained that pumping stations also suffered considerable damage, compounded by vandalism and the theft of electrical cables from electric pumps, which has paralyzed the irrigation and drainage systems.
The vandalism at the Magula station alone has directly affected 1,050 hectares of farmland.
“The defence dyke, which protects both the irrigation fields and the provincial capital, Xai-Xai, from rising Limpopo River levels, currently has more than 14 breaches along its length. Any tidal fluctuation or slight rise in the river level could flood the fields again, allowing saltwater to intrude and further degrade the soil,” Sitoe said, according to the independent daily ‘O País’.
According to Sitoe, emergency interventions are underway, including plugging breaches on access roads to allow farmers to return to their fields. “Distribution of agricultural inputs has also started, enabling some commercial operations to resume, such as the company UMBAU, which has already sown 700 hectares of wheat”, she said.
Source - https://clubofmozambique.com
