Friday, March 29, 2024

FAO injects US$335m into Zambia’s cassava production

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The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)has pumped about US$335 million into the Technical Cooperation Project aimed at promoting cassava production in Central and Luapula Provinces of Zambia.

The Italian government through FAO has also pumped in a further US$750 million for enhancing food security in cassava based systems in the two provinces.

Speaking yesterday during the official opening of a three-day Farm Business School Orientation workshop being conducted under the FAO supported project dubbed ”Enhancing food security in cassava based farming systems”, Luapula Province Acting Permanent Secretary Clement Siame said Government was happy with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for implementing a project aimed at improving the business opportunities for cassava farmers.

Mr Siame said Cassava farmers have not benefited much from the economic gains recorded in the country.

The FAO project aims at promoting profitable cassava production system, value addition to the crop and increased market access.

Mr Siame observed that the FAO project would increase incomes and improve the living standards of the small rural households in Luapula and Central provinces.

He said since cassava was mainly grown by small scale farmers, expanding its market would bring direct economic and social benefits to the farmers.

He added that training farmers in enhancing food security in cassava-based farming systems would go a long way in empowering them to an effective role in the market and cassava commercialisation.

The Acting PS further said that farm business school methodology would equip farmers with practical business skills.

Mr Siame also urged small scale farmers to advance beyond achieving household food security to improve incomes by saving and increasing investment in their farming business.

And speaking earlier at the same function, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MACO) National Project Coordinator for FAO, Alick Daka said about $335 million has been pumped into the Technical Cooperation Project (TCP) which is a two-year programme.

Mr Daka explained that this was under the integrated production and processing of cassava for increased food security and income generation.

He said another $750 million was received from the Italian government through FAO for enhancing food security in cassava based systems for Luapula and Central provinces.

22 COMMENTS

  1. LT:Are these figures correct 750M USD from Italy and 335m USD from FAO for cassava production. Who is contracting such huge debts? Off the cuff, this is irresponsible borrowing, unless the figure are exaggerated!!. I dont see us repaying 1billion USD from cassava!!Not even in a 100 years

  2. The figures are just too high are they really correct?It doesn’t make sense to borrow all that money for Cassava alone and in 2 provinces.If it were in mining it would have made sense but again the mining would have to be a big one…

  3. I have a question,

    is this DONATED money or BORROWED money.

    That is a lot of money for just Cassava.

  4. That seems like an awful amount of dollars into that sector. Can the powers that be give us a break down of how exactly it works out?

  5. When you see these imported phrases like “Technical Cooperation Project” & our very own local one “pumped in a further”…… run and run for your life becoz its clearly tied AID. For how long are we going to morgage and re-morgage the future of our grandchildren?

    I thot mbeki made it clear at the TICAD conference that all Africa needs is fair trade & not aid. ZAmbia is barely out of HIPC and we quickly are rushing to dig into more debt until it gets to our supposedly norm, neck deep.

    After the HIPC completion point, ZAmbia, which was previously owing $4-6billion got rewarded with relief. now this so called relief is a tricky term it might need developmental specialists to unpack.

  6. the figures are damn wrong. they dont make sense. LT kindly get back to your source and correct these figures. the amount you are talking about is in trillions man.

  7. If the figures are correct then we have a very big problem at our hands. Where such amounts are invested we surely must be able to see some impact by now. There is need for some authority to explain.

  8. Dear Lusaka Times,

    can you please develop a habit of providing a source of your information,least you lose credibility quickly.

    Ta.

  9. It is in Kwacha there is no way a UN agency can put these kinds of dollars in a project. It is in Kwacha, LT please verify your sources. Atleast according to ZNBC News last night this is in Kwacha not USD.

  10. May be it is about ‘food’ security… for the change. But serious this is huge monies. You can build three big olympic stadiums.

  11. Just recreate NAMBOARD and LIMA BANK there will be no need to talk about ood security once this is done.

  12. At least on some issues ,there is consensus on LT, surely do we need to get ourselve in debt that is not sustainable, its not in the recent past that we had the donaval scandal(vulture fund) why sholud we indebt ourselves further?
    Our Government can be really stupid at times but then may be if editor can shed more light on the nitty gritty of the deal, maybe we are being to hasty to judge but it has all the tell tale signs of debt written on it!

  13. LT, STOP THIS NEPOTISM PRACTICE AND EMPLOY A QUALIFIED EDITORIAL TEAM. DON’T BE SO COMPLACENT WITH YOUR ASSUMED POPULARITY. IF YOU CONTINUE TAKING PEOPLE FOR GRANTED YOU WILL SOON START LOSING THE READERSHIP/BLOGGERSHIP. TRY AND BUY A FEW NEWSPAPERS FROM AMERICA, UK, GERMAN, FRANCE, etc. THEIR PAPERS ARE THICK-MORE THAN 50 PAGES. BUT U RARELY, IF NOT AT ALL FIND GRAMMATICAL, SPELLING, RANGE, etc, ERRORS. THEY MAINTAIN VERY HIGH LEVELS OF DISCIPLINE. IT WILL JUST TAKE ANOTHER SERIOUS BLOGGER INITIATER N U WILL LOSE ALL UR BLOGGERS TO ANOTHER INITIATER. THE AMOUNT IS 2 BIG 4 INVESTING IN CASSAVA. WELL, MAYBE.

  14. BY THE WAY did Zambians know that cassava flour can be used for baking cakes? When I was in Zambia I used to use cassava flour for baking my rich cakes. Please, try it. Just in the same way you bake cakes with wheat flour. Please, give your feedback on this.

  15. We do not need aid to grow and market cassava. All we need is proper management. What we need is for the Food Reserve Agency to buy all the cassava grown in the two provinces plus western , package and resell it within and outside Zambia. We would not go hungry. By the way the whole world is crying for rice and Zambia is letting the rice in Western Province go to waste. I cannot understand.

  16. IT SEEMS TO ME THAT NO GOVT STARTING FOM KAUNDAS EVER WANTS WESTERN PROVINCE TO EVER DEVELOP.YOU WILL NEVER HEAR OF ANY GOVT SUPPORT PROGRAMME TO WESTERN IN PARTICULAR.NO WONDER IT IS THE LEAST DEVELOPED AND THE GOVT WANTS IT TO BE SO FOR THE REST OF ETERNITY.CASAVA HAS ALWAYS DONE VERY WELL IN WESTERN WHY NOT PROMOTE IT THERE TOO.RICE IS DOING VERY WELL THERE TOO BUT NO ONE WANTS THESE PEOPLE TO EVER SMILE.CASHEW NUTS ARE GROWING LIKE BUSH FIRES,IF IT WERE IN ANOTHER PROVINCE THE GOVT COULD HAVE SET UP AN INDUSTRY WE KNOW.CATTLE IS SECOND TO SOUTHERN PROVINCE AND YET RESTOCKING HAS NEVER BEEN DONE THERE SO THAT THE PROVINCE REMAINS UNDER DEVELOPED,GOD HELP US….

  17. are cakes our staple food .why dont you talk bout nsima, just making a cake needs sugar and other ingredients making it already not plausible!

  18. #19, I KNOW OUR STAPLE FOODS. Thats why I did not bother talk about them. Its that culture of not wanting to diversify into food preparation that also extends to economic diversification. Zambians are always thinking within the box. We do not generally appreciate cassava coz we do not know what we can do with it (value addition) to make it more valued, apart from making nshima from it. What about someone who does not want or eat nshima? How do you convince him/her to parttake in it?

  19. I agree with Mwanapoho yensu. A lot of rice is wasted in Western Province – good quality “super rice”.

    Cassave is a crop that can grow anywhere in Zambia. But why should such collosal sums of money be spent only in two provinces.

    Please, let someone be realistic.

  20. If it’S real,this huge amount is not going to cassava because this culture which don’t even need fertiliser can’t use sach huge amount of money.May be some guys want fill up thair pocket.

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