The Ministry of Agriculture and Food was visited by the First Vice-President of the Republic of Zimbabwe
Today at the Ministry, chaired by the First Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Tatarstan, Lenar Garipov, a meeting was held with the First Vice-President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Constantino Gouveia, Dominic Nyikadzino Chiwenga.
Constantino Chiwenga arrived in Russia at the invitation of the country's leadership to participate in the events of the Future Games.
In the morning, in the Kazan Kremlin, he met with the Rais of the Republic of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov. Rais of Tatarstan emphasized that Africa is a unique continent in terms of natural resources and potential. “Africa’s role in the global economy and international relations continues to grow progressively. In recent years, the African continent has demonstrated impressive rates of economic growth,” noted Rustam Minnikhanov.
He emphasized that for Russia Africa is an important foreign policy and economic partner, interaction with which in all areas requires more active development.
“Zimbabwe is a reliable ally of Russia on the African continent, with which we have strong, reliable, friendly ties,” said Rustam Minnikhanov. Based on the results of 9 months of last year, trade turnover between the parties amounted to $138 million.
During the meeting, great potential was noted for the development of cooperation in such areas as energy, mechanical engineering, medicine, IT and agriculture.
Constantino Chiwenga emphasized that Zimbabwe is completely open to doing business with the Russian Federation and developing new types of cooperation. “There are good opportunities for developing cooperation in the field of agriculture. The agro-industrial complex is one of the pillars on which the economy of our country stands. We are interested in the experience of Tatarstan, in particular, we are interested in your developments in terms of irrigation systems,” added the first vice-president of Zimbabwe.
At the Ministry, Lenar Garipov presented Konstantino Chiwenga with the capabilities of the republic’s agro-industrial complex. He said that last year a decent grain harvest was collected - more than 3.6 million tons, the gross harvest of sugar beets amounted to 1.7 million tons, oilseeds - 488 thousand tons, potatoes - 880 thousand tons, vegetables - 264 thousand tons.
“The share of agricultural products in the gross regional product of Tatarstan is 8%. The republic is fully self-sufficient in livestock products. We produce milk for 58% above the consumption, for meat by 21%, and for eggs by 29%,” noted the First Deputy Minister.