Government has paid all farmers countrywide who supplied over 800,000 metric tonnes of maize to the Food Reserve Agency in the 2015-2016 maize marketing season.
Agriculture Minister, Given Lubinda says concluded payments to farmers by the third week of December,2015.
Mr. Lubinda noted this is the first time farmers in the country have been given their money this early.
He further said that the Ministry of Agriculture has also adequately distributed farming inputs under the farmer input support program.
He said this during a meeting with PF members in Lusaka.
Mr. Lubinda added that the country will not face any food shortage because there are indicators of favourable rains in various parts of the country.
He however added that the ministry will carry out an assessment on the impact of the rains.
Meanwhile the Ministry of Agriculture is next week expected to sign a contract that will see the construction of 65 million cubic liters irrigation scheme in Chisamba.
Agriculture Minister Given Lubinda says his Ministry wants to set up three Irrigation schemes by the end of this year to enhance crop production in the country.
Mr. Lubinda says the irrigation schemes are expected to be constructed in Kafue, Chisamba and Mufurila Districts.
The Agriculture Minister notes that his Ministry has already allocated 11,000 hectares of land for irrigation to support the small scale farmers in the country.
Mr. Lubinda was speaking at a meeting in Lusaka.
The Minister said World Bank has provided 135 million US Dollars to improve the irrigation system in the country which was not used.
He disclosed that part of the money for the construction of the three irrigation systems while some of the funds has been taken to the Zambia National Service, Zambia Police and Prison Service to construct irrigation systems.
Isn’t December rather late? Farmers needed that money to plow back into their fields by the first week of November. They also needed to pay their kids school fees by the first week of August. Which means they should have been paid the very day they delivered the corn. We can agree that there is room for improvement here Mr. Minister!
Very late! Not even worth any mention – shame!
ECL has done it again. ECL is changing the faces of farmers. You have slammed shut the mouth of your usual critic, HH! Am sure, he too has been paid as he is a farmer.
Well done…..!
First question: Where did the money come from? when they are failing to meet debt obligations on several loans they have contracted and self-squandered while wrecking the future Zambian children who will have to pay it back.
Second: You all owe the farmers and are not doing them a favour. So pay them on the day the deliver the product not months after.
Third: Only in an election year can you make such a pron cement to self-praise yourselves. The farmers are the ones who are to come and thank the government if indeed credit is to be given.
Given I am not sure what happened to you man. You know the team you are with has crippled the country. Farmers can get paid now but what will happen next year and the year after with ever growing expenditures such as adding ministries, debt etc…
Bo Lubinda you are a disgrace, Kabimba used to put you in your place of a coward…surely how can be this empty tin be proud of paying up farmers in December when its raining when they are planting…what a stup*d man..how dare you insult them!!
This is proof that PF has really messed up our country and economy!! This is January and this idi.ot is boasting having paid farmers on time – Kaunda used to pay farmers in September so that they could prepare and buy inputs for the following season!
Yes GL has done better than his predecessors BUT this is NOT good enough to boast about it so ballistically!! HH can do much much better and you also know it!!
Chilyata, maybe you are the i.diot. have you even read the article? It says that the farmers were paid in December.
@Monkey Banana:
Clearly yopur name describes who you really are – a Monkey and a son of a Banana. You clearly have no brains and you are totally ignorant. Let me Educate you a little: Farming starts in November but prepererations start in September as I have stated. A sensible person, (AND YOU ARE ONE OF THEM) would have gotten trhe message.
Yes, the BOASTING by GL was in Jan BUT the Farmers were only paid in December which is too late for the planting season!! IDI.OTS like you monkeys just know how to eat – BUT you also need to know how the food is grown!! I hope this makes sense!!
why do these people lie like this, My parents have not been paid yes and someone goes on the media to lie to the whole nation
@betters, maybe your parents are not farmers or just want to get money for the product they sold to gbm
mj banda
they are serious farmers who DONT depend on hands out from Children.
You are chaps who have a classic kind of parents in their old age always bothering Children for Handouts every week. the Kind of Parasitic Parents.
Or maybe its you who is still a PARASITE on your parents?
Don’t lie minister, you bought small qauntity and you boast for this. RB bought huge metric tons and managed to pay them on time ask the senior officers in agric.
But at this time smaller payments are correct due to struggling economy. Were international markets performing in the same way?
This is proof PF have not been sleeping on the job. Hon. Lubinda, next Vice President (if he can beat off the girls)!
We wondered at the low profile Hon Lubinda keptin 2015; but now we know why! He has been working industriously behind the scenes. Let’s face it, if you compare the delays and failures of 2014, to pay and distribute inputs to Farmers, THIS IS SHINY AND IMPRESSIVE! PF IN 2015 has finished right on target. This is proof His Excellency President Lungu is a wise employer. We thought Hon Lubinda was side lined with a boring portfolio, but of course not. With his background in Agriculture, Hon Lubinda was the right man on the Agric.Front. Well done Sir!
Irrigation in place before 2016 ends to add! Wow, opposition eat dirt!!
we have not forgotten him stealing scholar ships to Russia to give his daughters that were meant for poor underprivileged students.
Honorable Minister Given Lubinda, there is no double that you have delivered as minister of Agriculture; am particularly impressed with the swift delivery of inputs to most parts of the country.
However Mr minister it is not true that all farmers are paid for the maize supplied last year. I was in my village in Muyombe, Mafinga District, a few of some of my relatives had not received their dues as at 27th December, 2015. And most likely there are many others from surrounding depots.
My appeal is to ask your office to follow up these cases to see where things could have gone wrong.
Lubinda, Monkey Banana are both idi.ots
“Mr. Lubinda noted this is the first time farmers in the country have been given their money this early.”
The statement above attributed to Mr Lubinda (supposedly a Minister of Agriculture) is not only a shame but a disgrace of the highest order. Mr Lubinda should do the honourable and correct this statement because it is not only misleading but absurd. The payment of farmers in the third week of December cannot be early for that year because the rain season had long started and maize was already planted especially in areas that still have normal rains.(Luapula , copper belt and Northern provinces) so where does that early come from? Farmers should have been paid at least before the end of October (2015) for them to prepare the fields and inputs and other farming logistics. Farming is…
I do have relatives in Mbala who earn their living solely by growing crops. They had not been paid at least by the time the so called minister is talking about. May be someone is lying to you to keep their Job. Instead they are making this minister look and sound foolish. Mr. Minister find reliable messengers to feed you with accurate information other wise you are a disgrace if you make such statements.
Sole, sole (Sorry!) bwana minister, not all farmers have been paid at all. In Solwezi district some farmers haven’t been paid yet. Confirm with your officers on the ground and you will know the truth!