President Robert Mugabe says Zimbabwe stands ready to work with South Africa in rebuilding its economy.

Speaking to journalists soon after meeting a visiting South African business delegation at Zimbabwe House in Harare, President Mugabe said South Africa was indeed a true friend of Zimbabwe and it was not surprising to see its business community offering a helping hand to the new government to address its challenges.

“We are very pleased with the visit,” Mugabe said. “It’s very enchanting, it boosts us up and shows the confidence that South Africa has in us.”

The leader of the delegation from Business Unity South Africa (BUSA), Patrice Motsepe, said Zimbabwe was a safe place for foreign investment and the country was likely to receive numerous investments in the next two years.
“I have confidence that anyone who commits resources to Zimbabwe will see that the country is a good place to do business in,” said Motsepe, one of South Africa’s richest persons and owner of the South African Premier League soccer club Mamelodi Sundowns.

Motsepe said the South African business community was willing to come and invest in Zimbabwe, adding that doing so was part of paying back to Zimbabwe for its contribution to South Africa’s economy.

He expressed satisfaction at the progress being made by the new government in attracting investors as well as creating a conducive environment for business.

The high-powered delegation arrived in the country on Monday morning and held meetings with Finance Minister Tendai Biti and the local business community.

Zimbabwean Ambassador to South Africa Simon Khaya-Moyo accompanied the 22-member delegation, which included Rev. Frank Chikane, a senior official in the Office of the President of South Africa.
Other members were drawn from SA’s various economic sectors such as mining, agriculture and construction. BUSA is South Africa’s biggest business group that incorporates the Black Business Council and Business SA.
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The National Technical Committee (NTC) on food security pack has urged government to revise the Food Support Programme (FSP) to make it more viable in responding to the needs of the vulnerable farmers in the country.

Committee Secretary Paul Kapotwe says the revision of the FSP would also help the country to unlock growth in the agriculture sector as many vulnerable farmers will benefit from programme.

Mr. Kapotwe was speaking in Katete, Eastern province where he is leading a delegation from the church and key heads of government departments to monitor activities under the FSP programme during the 2007-2008, and the 2008-2009 farming season.
He said the current FSP policy is weak and that many farmers were not benefiting from the programme.

Mr. Kapotwe, who is also Programme Against Malnutrition (PAM) Executive Director, further urged government to revise the food security pack programme (FSPP) to make it effective enough to reach all parts of the country.
He said although the current FSPP was capable of responding to the various needs of vulnerable people in society, it is not effective enough to reach out to the less privileged.

Meanwhile, Mr.Kapotwe has called on farmers in the country to embark on crop diversification to enhance food security.
He said there is need for framers to engage in crop densification in order to enable Zambia respond effectively to various challenges associated with the global economic crunch.

He said as the global economic meltdown continues to hit economies in the world, farmers should seriously embark on crop diversification which he said would go a long way in helping the country become a food basket in the region.

Mr. Kapotwe said Zambian farmers should take advantage of the land and water that the country has in abundance, to grow more food to feed the people and also export to other countries in the region.

The target groups under the food security pack programme are the aged, orphans and vulnerable people.

The National Technical Committee on food security pack is comprised of stakeholders from Caritas Zambia under the Zambia Episcopal Conference, Zambia News and Information Services (ZANIS), Ministry of community Development and Social Services and the Programme Against Malnutrition.

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The Zambia Wild Life Authority (ZAWA) says the auction sale of wild animals by the authority expected soon would attract both local and international buyers.

ZAWA spokesperson Wilfred Moonga said the authority was still finalizing how the whole exercise would be carried out.

Mr. Moonga told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka yesterday, that the ZAWA auction sale was not the first one as a similar auction took place last year.

He added that this year’s would be better.

He mentioned that the auction sale of wild animals is supposed to place, annually.

The spokesperson added that there has been growing interest from different individuals concerning the auction sale of animals.

He said the auction was meant for those with game ranches.

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A report on the review of the Fertiliser Support Programme has revealed irregularities in the distribution of fertilizer to small scale farmers.

The report says some officials, who are part of committees given the task to distribute the fertilizer, allocate themselves the commodity before distributing it to small scale farmers.

The report which has been submitted to cabinet for approval has also exposed fake co-operatives, which are formed during the distribution exercise.

Agriculture Minister, Brian Chituwo, says district agriculture committees, which handled the fertiliser support programme have let government down.

Dr. Chituwo was speaking in Lusaka on Tuesday, during a two day symposium on agriculture and livestock.

The gathering has been organised by the University of Zambia, School of Agricultural Sciences.

And UNZA Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dr. Wilson Mwenya, said there is need to introduce measures to address the problem of food shortages in Zambia.

The Kabwe Municipal Council has bought a waste collection machine worth K300 million.

Kabwe Mayor, Jerry Chama ,confirmed the development in an interview with ZANIS in Kabwe today. He said the money used to purchase the machine came from the Ministry of Local Government and Housing.

“When we were given this money we saw it proper to buy the machine so it would be easy for waste collection in our communities,” he said.

Mr Chama said the machine would be able to pump the waste materials in the community and help reduce water-borne diseases.
He said the community would be asked to pay a fee through their representatives for them to use the equipment.

“The fee will be decided upon soon after the council meeting where we will sit and come up with the price that would be suitable for the community to pay,” he said.

Mr.Chama said the money that would be collected would be used for servicing the machine, buying fuel, and paying the operator.

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sections of society that it has abandoned recreation facilities in the capital city.

Public Relations Officer, Henry Kapata said the council has been engaging the private sector in maintaining some of the recreation facilities in the city.

Mr. Kapata told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka today, that some private sector organisations have helped in maintaining some of the recreation facilities such as play parks.

He said the local authority understands that recreation facilities were very important to the members of the public for them to relax hence the need to maintain them.

Mr. Kapata observed that most of the residents have not been using and accessing the facilities because of the conditions attached by the organisations engaged to maintain them.

He added that the local authority always wants to see the best recreation facilities in the capital city.

The council Public Relations Officer however urged the organisations it has engaged to run the recreation facilities to put up flexible conditions that can enable Lusaka residents to have access to the facilities.
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