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Masvingo — In a city famous for its bustling business minds and industrial landmarks, Commissioner Sternly Kondongwe stands out not only for Byword Motors, Jadecon Construction and Transport logistics, and Zuva fuel stations, but also as a dedicated farmer steering a modern, tech-driven farming empire.
His two Mhande Jadecon farms, perched along the Masvingo-Bulawayo road and near the Bushmead area off the Great Zimbabwe Monuments road, embody a rare blend of agronomy and enterprise.
On the livestock frontier, Kondongwe manages 509 hectares devoted to a diversified array of animals.
The operation includes about 500 heads of beef cattle , Brahman and Mashona breads among them plus 180 Jersey dairy cows. The farm also keeps 243 boar goats, 194 Mashona sheep, and 93 Kalahari breeds, all monitored and nourished by a team of veterinary and agricultural experts.
Manager Terence Mandaza points to the farm’s smart- agriculture approach, noting that seasoned academics from major universities guide livestock and crop science across the operations.
“We are into livestock and crop production at our two farms. The former covers over 500 hectares and the latter around 50 hectares. Our productivity is high because we’ve brought in agriculture specialists in both animal and crop science,” Mandaza said, emphasising the farms’ commitment to cutting-edge farming practices.
The workforce mirrors the scale of ambition more than 100 staff members, including agricultural students on industrial attachments from across the county’s universities and colleges , contribute to daily operations.
Rumbidzai Chivi, the livestock farm supervisor and a Great Zimbabwe University animal science graduate has a deep understanding of her roles at the farm.
“We handle cattle for both beef and dairy, goats, and sheep, plus a steady stream of poultry. Our meat products feed abattoirs and local butcheries, keeping the farms profitable and people employed,” she said.
The dairy side features a 300-liter-per-day milk processing workshop, producing Jadecon soar milk for local markets, with fodder and feed grown on-site to sustain daily production.
As for poultry and crop diversification, the farms operate multiple poultry batches thousands of birds rotated by two-week schedules.
To fight livestock disease out breaks the farm maintain a network of four dip tanks to battle tick-borne diseases and other health threats.
When disease or pests threaten, sick animals are quarantined and treated in designated paddocks, demonstrating a careful balance between expansion and animal welfare.
Across to the crops division, Nomsa Takaedza, an agronomist, and supervisor oversees 50 hectares planted with a variety of crops, including tomatoes, cabbages, soya beans, sweet potatoes, maize, cabbages and wheat.
Irrigation is a mix of drip and overhead systems powered by Lake Mtirikwi water and boreholes.
In the heart of Bushmead, the team aims to scale up horticultural output with greenhouses already under construction for 1,500 cucumber plants, signaling another leap toward self-sufficiency.
A notable portion of the harvest—cabbages—finds its way to local markets, retailers, and restaurants, with tens of thousands of heads cultivated across the year.
The farm’s aquaculture chapter features eight fish ponds, each housing 40,000 fish, tallying some 320,000 fish destined for local consumers and are ready for harvest .
The farming enterprise sits alongside Kondongwe’s broader public profile. The Commissioner, appointed earlier this year by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to lead the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services, has earned multiple business accolades this year, with three awards conferred in November alone.
He openly embraces challenges posed by climate variability and disease while pursuing climate-smart strategies, notably the solar-powered approach that fuels his farming operations.
Beyond commerce, Kondongwe is known for philanthropy, offering support to vulnerable community members, including Persons with Disabilities, the elderly, and youth.
His leadership philosophy centers on hard work, with a daily routine that begins at 5 a.m. and weaves farm oversight with executive responsibilities. “I wake up early to farm, then head to the office to engage in business affairs. My work speaks for itself, and my farm managers and supervisors are here to ensure everything runs smoothly, I work and don’t rely on handouts ” he told Centre News during a recent tour.
Looking ahead, Kondongwe envisions further expansion of agricultural activities, leveraging smart agriculture to navigate climate change, disease pressures, and economic hurdles.
His example integrating large-scale farming with commercial ventures and social responsibilities paints a portrait of an entrepreneur who refuses to surrender ground to uncertainty.
Kondongwe’s journey blends boardrooms, livestock, crops, and community impact, proving that for the businessman , farming remains not just a livelihood but a platform for national progress.
