Scores of peasant farmers in Chikando area in Chipata district in Eastern province are stuck with maize because Food Reserve Agency can no longer buy the crop.
A check by ZANIS at Chikando satellite depot in Chikando ward in Luangeni constituency found that most farmers were stunk with their produce.
One farmer talked to said that FRA was only purchasing 20 x 50kg bags from each farmer.
Mr. Fackson Mtonga said that each farmer in the area had produced more 1000 bags of maize adding that it was unfair for FRA to only purchase 20 bags out of 1000.
Mr. Mtonga said that unscrupulous businessmen have also invaded the area and whre buying a 50kg bag of maize at K40 000.
FRA at Chikando satellite depot was given a target to purchase 4690 x 50kg of maize.
And area Member of Parliament Angela Cifire has assured the farmer in the area that FRA would purchase their maize as government has allocated more funds to the Agency to buy more maize.
Ms. Cifire told farmers that all their produce would be purchased because government would soon release fund to FRA.
She advised farmers in her not to panic selling their produce t unscrupulous businessmen who were exploiting the market price.
Ms Cifire who is also Youth, Sport and Child Development Deputy Minister is in the area to monitor some developmental project in her constituency.
ZANIS
You meant they are smelling of maize?
The Ministry of agriculture need to build Silos which can preserve the maize and the goverment can give farmers credit notes if they do not have the money to pay them immediately. Better than letting the maize rot and preople starve. Maybe you need me as a consultant for the Ministry of agriculture I can get half the pay of the ministers not implementing such programs
you farmers you somehow deserve this treatment because this is the government you always voted for. So what do u expect if your own eastener RB has no respect for the rule of law? keep they until they rot.
Zambians are jokers about real issues;; they spend the whole world on useles manda mandas, and refuse to spend a single ngwee on food to feed the poor diying of hunger in Chibolya in Mufulira what a shame to our greedy politicians
#3 Cant we make comments without bringing ethnicity into it. If there had money spent in Eastern province then RB would have been accused of favouring the east.
So our farmers are able to produce plenty,GRZ needs to buy that produce and make the mealie prices down but as you know they will not when the man in charge is bizz troating from country to country spending the zambian money on his visits like a crazy kid who has just seen some sweets
RB recommended that FRA should buy from his farm first and later should buy from the rest of the farmers the whole Zed.
No worries Chipata farmers RB has sold his already expensively. Just do Ziwaya, sump, and use the same maize to lure his chickens into your houses and munch them. Simples!
Free Market economics at work. Now, no money to buy the excess maize produce and silos to store it in. Next season, no maize available and mealie meal prices will shoot through the roof.
Questions is: Why have the Agro economists, maize milling company managers and all other players in the most lucrative business in Zambia failed to seize the opportunity to increase their capacity? Why ain’t banks helping out the small milling business to purchase the maize and stock it up for either export or for local consumption during the lean months??
Zambian business operations can be mind boggling really.
i don’t see no free market economics here. just a g.r.z monopoly duping farmers by setting itself up as their only buyer. a free market only exists between a willing seller and a willing buyer (unscrupulous business-man or not).
no politician or bureaucrat has the expertise or discipline to produce goods and services people can willingly buy. only “proper” business people who live-and-die by the bottomline can do that. if g.r.z left well alone, a free, fair and vibrant farm produce market will develop.