Friday, March 29, 2024

Farmers should take advantage of the weaker Kwacha-Guy Scott

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VICE President, Dr. Guy Scott, addresses a rally at Vubwi Boma on Tuesday to drum up support for PF candidate, Margaret Miti in a Vubwi by-election slated for Thursday next week
VICE President, Dr. Guy Scott

REPUBLICAN Vice president Guy Scott says farmers should take advantage of the weaker Kwacha and export more agriculture products.

Speaking at the official closing of the of the two-day 109th annual congress of the Zambia National Farmers’ Union in Lusaka yesterday ,Dr Scott said farmers should not continue mourning but take advantage of the weak Kwacha to export more.

“Zambia farmers need to be reason if they are to acces export markets interms of commodity pricing, farmers in this country expect to earn more than what is prevailing in the regional and international market,” Dr Scott said.

He observed that there was plent of politics in most of the fields in the country which required radical changes to put things right to move forward.

“In any business venture thee is need to follow the law of supply and demand sometimes if commodity prices drops work out something that can ustain your business,” he said.

Aand Evelyn Nguleka the first women to be president of the farmer’s union ,has been re-elected as the president of the farmer’s union.

Spaeking earlier Dr Nguluke said farmers have continued experiencing
rising costs inputs due to increase in the cost of fuel, interest
rates, electricity and labour.

She said it was amazing that Government has turned a blind eye by allowing interest rates to go up as high as 24 per cent.

“We appeal to the Government to do something anmd if the Government failed to address that ZNFU will be calling upon Government to put all farmers under the subsidy program,” She said.

Dr Nguluke added that the revised fees and charges by statutory organizations such as the Workman’s Compensation Fund, the introduction of loading fees by some local authorities in some districts plus the upward increase in the cost of imported inputs due to Kwacha depreciation.

“If requested to pass a verdict on the 2015 national budget, our assessment is that it is a “business as usual budget” in as far as the agricultural sector is concerned.

This is because, apart from the reduction in the cost of jet fuel and raising of the import duty on imported refined oil from 80 ngwee per Kg to K2.20 per Kg, the focus reflects doing more of the same,” she said.

30 COMMENTS

  1. A year and a few months ago, just after the re-basing of the kwacha, the VP was boasting and was quoted saying that the Kwacha was the most powerful currency on the sub-continent. What have you done to the economy, Mr VP, within this short period to start referring to the Kwacha as weak?

  2. Paya Farmer(PF): How can they take advantage of the weaker Kwacha when you have previously banned farmers from exporting their maize?? Come to think of it, you have also denied the Kwacha is getting weaker by the day. Total confusion !!

  3. Paya Farmer what are you talking about, up to now some farmers are not yet paid for the maize supplied to FRA. This is so frustrating this is the only government which does not support farmers. Anyway we understand because the current head of state is not a farmer. Late Levy was a farmer, RB was a farmer, KK had a farm.

    • It is not a requirement iwe chimbwi that a Presido should own a farm in order to be a good leader. thats myopic thinking o. FTJ was not a farmer but he managed somehow to improve the economy

  4. About the Trojan Horse in Zambia:
    We have one named by a certain mass media outlet. Let us say you had Zebras in the Luangwa National Park; say some looked like those that you have always seen in your life.
    Then one grasses only where the yellow stone or some other color is ; then in that place every possible grass, tree, bird wild fruit etc are there all year round: The Garden of Eden in Zambia.
    If you are looking for a Trojan horse, which one would you point a finger at?

  5. Vice President Guy Scott should be facilitating the export of farm produce from Zambian farmers than blaming it on politicking. Scott Opusa is No. 2 in the nation from ailing Sata and part of his responsibility is help farmers who his government has failed to pay export farm produce. Instead, Opusa is talking as if still in opposition which is a mark of failure of PF govt. to deliver on agriculture policy.
    Surprisingly, Dr Nguluke Farmers Union President says PF 2015 budget is of business as usual when her farmers remain unpaid. Instead talks about high cost of aviation fuel which has little relevance to the unpaid farmers who were promised their produce to be purchased by PF govt and paid for immediately. Everywhere, failure, failure, failure.

  6. LT pay attention to what you publish. It is supposed to be Dr Nguleka not Nguleke. I have noted that you do this over and over in your reporting without improving. Please employ editors to do this job not rushing to publish stories that have spelling mistakes all over.

  7. What is the role of government Dr.Scott to the citizens of the country?
    I thought one function is to find markets for the products we produce in the country.We have high commissioners and embassies across the world and the mandate is to promote trade.Now if you the vice president can not do this on behalf of the farmer then your presence is useless Sir.
    Moreover when maize had demand last year you banned the export now that there is no demand and you have failed to pay farmers then you tell them to find a market for themselves.What a useless statement.You are proud of the week kwacha.What a government?

  8. Its amazing how Zambians tends to look at a bad situation and then flip it into good news all in the name of scoring some political points.

  9. Scott you would do well to keep quiet. Which farmers is he talking about? his fellow white farmers? The yet paid for the maize they supplied to them. People must have some sense of shame on the things that they are part to.

  10. Sorry meant the people who voted them into power and have supplied maize to them are not yet paid. So which farmers is Scott talking about to take advantage of the Kwacha the PF has massacred.

  11. The gov’t seem to be struggling with the agriculture sector. Citizens have responded with vigour and have bumper crops, yet the gov’t feels comfortable to treat farmers like little children by lecturing them on market forces.

    The issue is really that the gov’t should have in place policies to monitor the sector. They should respond quickly to arising problems so as to keep the sector healthy. It should not be about speculating on the stock exchange!

    Support farmers by aggressive subsidy, and grants aid. Apply these according to the market response. Gov’t should not be told by unions what to do! Monitor and and apply planned responses timely.

    Growing Agriculture is one of the gov’ts mandated programmes, and elections will stand on how the gov’t have treated farmers

    • In the UK, farmers just plow excess corpse back in the ground. The gov’t and EU pAy them subsidies to do that rather than release excess crops on the market, as a way of not affecting negatively the supply and demand balance. British apples are usually more expensive than a French Apple in the stores. They get top dollar by not over supplying.

      If farmers are not exporting what then? Gov ‘t buys the excess for food mountains, or in Zambia we should buy the excess from farmers for welfare to the poor. But gov’t must pay farmers timely.

  12. Iam on record of criticising GS until recently when GS spoke well of HEMCS however I now take back whatever good I said. Why because GS’ personal interests conflict with those of the poor small scale farmer that real PF represents, how does a weak kwacha help the small scale farmer that is now forced to buy a bag of D-compound at K230 or even at K250?? As for the big commercial farmer how will govt benefit anything from firms like Zambeef (HH’s partners in crime) a company you have unshamely comeone to support time again despite it being a partner in exploitation and externalising all funds earned in Zambia to banks abroad? I have issue with these things and this is why I have mentioned before I believe you are nothing but a traitor to the cause of PF.

    • It’s like it is only phantoms in PF who are forging forward with pro-poor policies because try as I might, I have not heard one Minister say or do anything in the way of progression towards alleviating the extremely poor. It’s not only Guy Scott who utters rubbish but the majority of the top doggs in your party so if you are talking about GS being a traitor to the cause of the PF, then this cause is only restricted to whatever paper it is written on as NO ONE in your party actually follows your manifesto or principals. I am in Zambia and am betting you comment from abroad and so have the luxury of painting the current situation in this country in a way that will make you feel better. Us down here do not have that luxury because we are stuck with the reality.

    • I Concur with all you have stated. As with Zambeef externalising funds abroad, this is the real problem with PF.

      They just seem so out of control with these foreign investors. They pile into Zambia to use our resources and send the rewards abroad. Then all these politicians including opposition leaders, like HH and Chipimo all seem to support these type of arrangements. I mean Zambeef should be something Zambians are proud of, but it is not remotely Zambian. It’s headed by foreigners and Zambians are just decorations in the structure.

      It is the same with our Mining industry. They bring all these people in and let them do whatever they want, including causing industrial unrest, blackmailing the gov’t to change its VAT. Regulations, and loudly complaining on new Royalties!

    • My statement was to concur with @2020Vision; not the moaning @Dudelove and his anti PF comments.

      And no Dudelove I am not a PF minion, cadre or whatever!

    • Whatever rocks your boat Patriot. I moan and will continue to moan till PF gets their act together, which according to the happenings on the ground, will not be anytime soon. You are abroad so I do not blame you.

  13. …balance of economics has to be considered here…How many farmers produce for exports compared to farmers, SMEs and companies which depend on imports to produce goods consumed in Zed..??…Scott himself is a farmer probably exporting flowers to Netherland….I can see a situation were he will do anything under his influence to keep the Kwacha that low for his selfish benefits….
    Give us a balance sheet to show how much the govt is gaining out of such exports compared to how much the country is losing on imports……because of weak Kwacha..

  14. We are told the government has no money to pay farmers. Is this fair. We were told payments will be done within two weeks and this is almost end of October. We are preparing for the next farming season and no money to buy farming inputs. Please PF pay the farmers. You are killing us.

  15. Is the muzungu wopusa still alive? The man has grown cold feet of late. This bully Kambwili is threatening to take the VP’s wife because he believes in the rule of the jungle.
    Muzungu, where is our president? Sent him on sabbatical leave to Scotland or land of the ancestors?

  16. come on dotty scotty; you r just saying that to justify the governments action of selling maize to neighbouring countrys. soon we will not have enough to feed ourselves here, then what will you say? blame the farmer for exporting Zambia s staple food? you clever bugger you LOL

  17. iam really disappointed with this dr ngaluka who instead of talking on behalf of poor farmers who are not being paid by the government she went on talking crap and scott the useless white man goes on to talk about taking an advantage of the weak kwacha by exporting maize this is no sense really muzungu o pusa too much why cant his boss retire him he must be very tired of anything he stole alot from these by elections a minister of agriculture who promised to pay all farmers by the month of october is he still there or he is hidding shit pf

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