ABSTRACT
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country where elevation and rainfall are highly correlated. Rainfall varies from below 300 mm annually in the low-lying areas in the south and southeast, to more than 1,500 mm in the mountains bordering Mozambique. Rain falls from November to March, and only about one-third of the country is suitable for intensive agriculture. Figure 3.2 shows the agro-ecological regions of Zimbabwe (ENDA, 1991). Traditionally tobacco has been the primary agricultural commodity, although cotton, tea, citrus, livestock, wheat, sugar, and maize are also important. Figure 3.3 shows that all rivers within Zimbabwe originate from the high veld – veld or veldt is the extensive grassland region of eastern and southern Africa – where most of the intensive agriculture is practiced. These rivers drain to the Zambezi River and Lake Kariba in the north, and to the Limpopo River in the south. The Zambezi and Limpopo rivers are the two major rivers flowing to the Indian Ocean.
