-President Mwanawasa has lashed out at the Food Reserve Agency-FRA’s failure to stand on its own despite government subsidies.
President Mwanawasa warned that if the FRA fails this year to demonstrate that the money pumped into the agency is growing, the government will have no option but to scrap off the agency.
Dr. Mwanawasa wondered why the FRA collects produce from farmers, sells the produce and on top of that gets government subsidy but still fails to stand on its own financially let alone pay farmers for their produce.
Dr. Mwanawasa said this in Vubwi constituency in Chadiza district in Eastern province today when he addressed a public rally.
He pointed out that it was saddening that FRA promptly gives hefty salaries to its staff at the expense of paying farmers.
“ Why is it that salaries for FRA staff are more than what other government workers are getting. FRA pays its workers lavishly. Government expects FRA this year to pay the difference and not to get back to government to ask for subsidy,” said President Mwanawasa.
“Where do you take the money. FRA you get paid promptly and so hefty, we break our backs as government for the people of Zambia not that a few like yourselves should benefit, why can’t you pay the farmers first before you pay salaries to your staff,” asked Dr. Mwanawasa.
President Mwanawasa further directly the FRA to maintain the current number of satellite depots around the country to enable farmers sell their produce at accessible points as apposed to the agency’s intention to reduce the number of depots on account of financial hardships.
The President noted that reducing the number of satellite depots would contradict government’s efforts to promote agriculture in the country.
He noted that government will continue supporting agriculture and urged the private sector to fully get involved in the market of agriculture products.
Dr Mwanawasa noted that agricultural produce marketing should not be left to government alone but warned the private sector against stealing from farmers.
The president also announced that government has decided to continue with the Fertiliser Support programme, FSP, in order to boost food production.
Dr Mwanawasa explained that government will in fact increase fertilizer supply to farmers around the country.
And Dr. Mwanawasa has expressed happiness at the completion of phase one of the construction of Chadiza hospital at a cost of K1.7 billion.
He said the second phase of the project will be embarked on soon at the total cost of K3.2 billion saying he is proud that the people of Chadiza will now access quality health care services close to them.
The president however pointed out that there was need for the ministry of health to ensure that hospitals are fully stocked with drugs saying it will be meaningless for government to build hospitals that have no drugs.
Dr Mwaanwasa said government was also working hard to improve the road and other social and economic infrastructure in Chadiza and the country at large.
Meanwhile, president Mwanawasa has appealed to civil servants working in rural areas to help government provide adequate and efficient services despite the hardships they face.
He noted that government appreciates the important contribution civil servants working in rural areas are making saying they should not despair as government was working hard to improve their services there.
At the same rally, President Mwanawasa paid tribute to the MMD party officials in Eastern province for their efforts to develop the nation.
He however called for continued commitment and hard work among party if the party and the nation was to further embrace development.
And speaking when he met the four chiefs from Chadiza district, President Mwanawasa said government was in the process of creating more constituencies to enable all Zambians fully participate in the political activities of the country.
He said the request by the traditional leaders to have Vubwi subdivided into more constituencies is a sure sign of the zeal by the people to get involved in the political activities in the country.
He however warned against having multiple constituencies that fail to enhance full political participation by the electorate.
And Dr. Mwanawasa said government regrets that a number of chiefs were applying for loans to buy small cars instead of buying bigger vehicles or tractors that will be of benefit to the chiefs themselves and their subjects.
He however said he was happy that some chiefs have applied for tractors a thing he said is very much welcome and wise in that it will bring more returns to the chiefs.
And Home Affairs Minister Ronnie Shikapwasha told the chiefs that his office was working in collaboration with the Malawian and Mozambican officials to resolve the land disputes.
He was responding to the four traditional leaders who expressed concern at the continued land disputes between Zambia and its neighbours Malawi and Mozambique.
Earlier at the rally, Vubwi Member of Parliament Eustakio Kazonga paid tribute to President Levy Mwanawasa for visiting the constituency.
Dr. Kazonga said President Mwanawasa was the first head of state to visit Vubwi since independence in 1964.
The Mp said the people of Vubwi were extremely delighted by the President’s visit which he said showed how much love and care the President has for them.
The President received a number of gifts from the people of Vubwi among them a bull, two goats, chickens and several other items.
The President was accompanied by Finance Minister Ng’andu Mgande, Home Affairs Minister Ronnie Shikapwasha, Works and Supply Minister Kapembwa Simbao, Transport and Communication Minister Dora Siliya, Sceince and Technology Minister Peter Daka, MMD National Chairman Michael Mabenga, some deputy Ministers and Senior MMD and government officials.
The President has since left Chadiza for Chipata enroute to Chama where he is tomorrow expected to commission the Chama inter-connector electricity project with his Malawian counterpart Bingu Mutharika.
FRA is just the old NAMBOARD with a new face. parastatal mentality of lining pockets first and worrying about the job at hand later.
Good point Levy. Look at NCZ aswell. I think it was a misconcieved project as it was not tied to any local phosphate or sulphur deposits. These are Key and bulky ingredients for fertilser and sulpuric acid manufacture. It maybe cheaper to import finished products/fertiliser than transport the bulky raw materials through Durban or Dar. Also the pollution NCZ spews into the Kafue river (NUTRIENTS FOR KAFUE WEED) is a bigger risk (power generation risk). I wonder why some people still yearn for Namboard and Zambia Airways.State enterprise must generate GDP NOT chew from the treasury.
We need very serious debate and decisions in the country about management of large public goods enterprises such as food (FRA) railways (ZR), NCZ, ZESCO, ZAMTEL etc. Obviously one prescription does not fit all situations, but there are trends and experience has taught us that we goofed on many important issues and we must rectify them. Farmers must be paid if they deliver produce and FRA has become too elaborate a structure wihout a clear goal
Good timing! We always get this when there is a rally. How I pray people back home will one day work up from there sleep. It is always at rallies that stuff like this are said. Why even attend them?
Oops! wake up. Blimey me. Not work up.
The South African government’s refusal to even acknowledge the crisis in Zimbabwe has resulted in as many as three million Zimbabweans walking the streets of South Africa. If President Mbeki and his deputy president, Zuma, had acted decisively on Zimbabwe nine years ago these Zimbabweans would not be here today. His refusal to address the crisis in Zimbabwe – and his friendship with President Mugabe – has brought them here. His block-headedness is directly responsible for the eruption of xenophobia.
I know this the wrong topic to blog on this article but Lusaka times should wake up and report latet news
truly farmers are suffering too much. The NAMBOARD AND CO-OPATIVES which existed before were better than now, in rural areas the farmers have no access to the imputs. The NCZ should have its own clients to sell their products.
why have the FRA ?when farmers themselves can form and manage cooperatives or crop management institutions.
Dont disturb my sleep, ba Chuchu. Yo finance minister tricked u by creating an NGO as FRA to replace Zamtrop
These are Chiluba’s tricks of visiting companies early in the morning and later do nothing. Work is done in Offices, where you have pen and paper, not on public platforms-this mentality by all those holding high and influential offices should also cease. Act!!!! after all you, Levy Patrick Mwanawasa, SC, The President of the Republic of Zambia and Chairman of AU have all the powers and authority vested in you to curtail this type of lumpen bahaviour-Act we mwaume we.
FRA as i understand it should store food in good years and then offload it in the lean years in order to control food prices and to cusion affected farmers. What has happened to the food silos left by NAMBOARD. A Zimbabwean company was given a contract to refurbish the silos, but nothing has been said of the progress to-date.
FRA boasts of a very succesful farmer and businessman for a chairman, why cant his business acumen be cultivated for the good of the Agency. Indeed the Pres is right, FRA should work up from slumber and meet the modern day challenges of reserving food. FSP should be left to other institutions equipped with expertise and other resources to distribute inputs to farmer.
Stop giving them money so that they stand on their two feet.They get money from gov and increase thier salaries-selfishness ebwafya pa zed
Look guys, FRA is a quasi-govt entity. It can’t make any money with the kind of political interference it receives. It is supposed to be a custodian of national food security. This partly entails that it will put some food into reserves for use in stabilising the situation in ‘lean’ years as someone pointed out. Now if it stores this food, money is locked up in it, and so it cant make any money. It is a fallacy to think that FRA can be run 100% as a business. Otherwise it will not achieve its strategic objectives for the nation. The president should consult b4 opening his mouth. There is a reason for the EU to pay farmers for not producing, its also done in Canada and elsewhere.
FRA is operating like ZRA…Criticals and his group must go. These 2 institutions are minting a lot of money and yet they give their workers 8% increament. What is that?
Levy is just politicking.Nway he knows the audience he’s talking to
these *****s deposit the money in the banks, or buy shares and earn interest and withdraw or sell the shares back, just check on how much worhty they have, you will be surprised,the whole systems sucks big time!
#13 Vicky. Please do not draw comparisons with EU or Canada.Lets compare ourselves with Botswana, Swaziland (or even RSA to overate ourselves). Zambia is a poor country and had huge debts(just written off and have started to grow again). Those chinese firms you see operating in Zambia are (100%)or quasi-govt owned and yet they make profit. But China also has politicians. This is not so with our ZESCO,ZAMTEL,ZNBC,NCZ…We need need to get our act right. Politician or not. No excuses.SIMPLY RESIGN.FRA was exporting maize to Zim for 100USD per tonne this year BUT will be importing maize for 400USD a tonne soon (due to floods & global commodity prices rise). What a pathetic strategy!
FRA is a waste of time and i dont understand these grz official sitting in these positions why there not able to see the difference between the food production for the last 15yrs and the time before that.Having had a brief experience working for the co-opratives,ZCF had had a 99% recovery of loans and and created employment to many through its many subsidiaries such as district co-ops,prov co-ops,commercial services,insurance,finances services as well as the co-op bank which was short lived.
we shouldnt forget that during the zcf time.the problem was not production but it was storage.We were always 2 seasons ahead with maize production which constitutes 80% of our staple food.Every where you travelled to on the main roads you would find stacks and stacks of maize.you people should ask your selves when you last saw stacks of maize on the side road for storage not for sale.What kafupi and his clonnies did was to remove the distribution of agric inputs away from zcf and gave it to MP’s to distribute in turn destroyed the co-op structure.And this MP’s never even distributed just sold the fertilizers at soweto market.VIVA to the CO-OP’s
If Levy wants these agencies to be profitable, I would give him one advise, HAND OF THESE COMPANIES!! And the them them be run as a purely business entity. It will make some money!! Just get some smart Men and Boys in that company.
One of the biggest problems we have with most of these companies, Government has so much control or interests in them. Governments are not good business investors.
I meant to say ” Let them be run as a purely business entity” Sorry for the typo