By Delicious Mathuthu
Russia’s leading agricultural chemicals company, Uralchem JSC, has donated 23 000 metric tonnes of fertiliser to Zimbabwe with the assistance of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).
The donation, which is part of the company’s global humanitarian policy, consists of potash and NPKS (Nitrogen, Phosphate, and Sulphur) fertilisers.
In a statement, Uralchem Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dmitry Konyaev, said the shipment is part of its humanitarian drive to see a productive and sustainable farming Africa to avert food crisis.
“A relief shipment of 23 000 tonnes of fertilisers donated by Uralchem Group has been delivered to Zimbabwe.
“The transport of the consignment comprising of potash and NPKS fertiliser was facilitated by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), which chartered a vessel to send the vital fertilisers from Europe to the port of Beira in Mozambique. From there the consignment was delivered to Zimbabwe by land,” he said.
“The donation is the latest of Uralchem Group’s five humanitarian shipments sent to African nations to support productive and sustainable farming and to alleviate the effects of an unprecedented global food crisis,” Konyaev said.
The Russian company says it has contributed over 134 000 tonnes of fertilisers to Africa in the past two years.
Benefitting countries include Malawi, Kenya, Nigeria and Zimbabwe, mostly facilitated by the WFP through the European Union.
Konyaev said Uralchem Group has committed to donating approximately 300,000 tonnes of mineral fertilisers to developing nations that face the risk of famine in support of the United Nations’ second Sustainable Development Goal to end hunger, achieve food security and improve nutrition.
Uralchem Group runs three major Russian companies which are Uralchem JSC, Uralkali PJSC and TOAZ JSC with a cumulative production capacity of over 23 million tonnes of fertilisers with about 38 000 employees.
