Farmers in Lundazi district are reported to be smuggling maize and other crops to Malawi’s markets that are strategically established along the Zambia-Malawi international borders.
ZANIS in Lundazi reports that Chimaliro Ward Councillor, John Kamanga, disclosed this during the Agricultural and Commercial Show in senior Chief Mwase’s are whose theme was ‘’BUSINESS IN A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT’’ attended by Lundazi District Commissioner, Janet Mvula, held over the
weekend.
Councillor Kamanga said several farmers and vendors from Zambia ferry maize, soya beans, groundnuts and other farm produce in trucks, oxcarts and on bicycles to the markets commonly known as “Bwandila” dotted along the Zambia-Malawi boarders, especially on Thursdays.
He said although a 50kg bag of maize fetches KR60 in that country as compared to KR65 in Zambia, the delay by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) to open the marketing season, reduced number of satellites depots, delayed payment of dues among others were reasons for selling the maize and other crops in Malawi.
The councillor said farmers further claimed that the FRA only buys maize from farmers leaving out other crops such as groundnuts, soya beans, sunflower and other cash crops and wondered where the farmers would sell other crops.
And efforts to a get comment from Lundazi District Agricultural Coordinator, Philemon Lungu, failed as he was reported to be attending Provincial Planning and Review meeting.
ZANIS
They are thinking outside the box
Nubian Devil, You are so jealous of other women and it shows. You are a Sata worshiper and you cant even learn from the civilized world that live in. Sata is uncivilized and uncouth. He cannot be reasoned with. He thinks like a child and acts like a child, yet you back him 100%. What a loser you are. Fuseke!!!
Leave those civilized people alone. what is the problem. COMACO was established in lundazi and you decided to take to chipata. The farmers who allowed them to cheated on their cotton last year, stole half their money per kg of cotton. can that DC go to kalikomo village and see where the boundary passes. it cuts the village, even through someone’s house. There is no proper boarder. There are the same Tumbuka and after all, malawi has NRCs. Just concentrate on Bye elections and causing death through dangerous driving. The business has being going on for years and years. Go to Luapula, Chipata, Chadiza, Sinazonwe, Kalabo Sesheke, Mwinilunga, Nakonde, Mbala, Mpulungu. Chama.
It is free market trade. After all they are trading within SADAC, and are not giving the maize free of charge.
Balekeni benecho basange makopala yakusungila ma banja ghawo, palaimwe baboma mwatondeka kubagula mukhumba bafwe nanjala, balekani basange nthowa zinyake zakupenjela ndalama.
LT you can moderate that comment as many times as you want I don’t give a damn, this is one of the 73 or is it 75 languages spoken in Zambia, if I had written in bemba you wouldn’t have seen the need to moderate. Shame on you!