Agricultural entrepreneur: Charles Mambadzo
Charles Mambadzo, owner of Eden Greenfields Investments CC, has been involved in the agricultural industry for more than six years. His business provides a wide range of services, such as vegetable gardening, organic vegetable seed and pesticide supplies, training, greenhouse construction, irrigation services and horticultural-related projects such as aquaponics and hydroponics installations.Mambadzo said the life of an agricultural entrepreneur (agripreneur) involves a multitude of responsibilities and daily tasks such as planning, implementing and overseeing various agricultural projects.
“Some of my day-to-day activities include designing and installing irrigation and horticulture systems, managing budgets, conducting training sessions and ensuring the smooth operation of different farming activities,” Mambadzo explained.
The agripreneur has a number of qualifications that helped him lay a strong foundation, which he believes has contributed to the success of his business thus far.
Lifelong learning
His educational background includes a Level 4 certificate in horticulture from the HTA Academy in Zimbabwe and AgriSETA in South Africa in 2019, a certificate in sustainable farming from NUST in 2020, a Global GAP certification as a registered trainer, and several other specialised training programmes, such as the ToT Certificate in hydroponics and aquaponics in 2023 and a certificate in solar energy from Udemy in 2019.
“These qualifications have provided me with a strong foundation in horticulture, sustainable farming practices, and project management, all of which have been crucial to my success in the agricultural business,” says Mambadzo.
However, the agripreneur said even with his educational background, there are still multiple other skills he is convinced one needs to be a successful entrepreneur in the agricultural industry.
True passion
Two of the skills are strong communication and collaboration skills.
“Effective communication and the ability to collaborate with various stakeholders are also crucial,” Mambadzo said.
He added that to succeed in the farming business and the agriculture industry, proficient project management skills, including planning, budgeting, and developing, are crucial.
He said additional skills such as designing and the know-how of installing horticultural-related systems, strong presentation development, training abilities, and intermediate welding skills are valuable.
The agripreneur said that despite his colourful educational background, he still believes that it is his passion for agriculture that has led to a successful career in the sector.