Government is working out plans to ensure that people losing employment in mining companies do not remain unemployed, President Banda said yesterday.

He said this at Lusaka International Airport shortly before departing for Mfuwe for a 10-day festive season holiday.

Mr Banda said although government had not yet come up with a concrete plan, it was contemplating ways of ensuring that mine workers at Luanshya Copper Mine and others remained in employment.

“What we are considering is that if possible, we ensure that our workers do not remain unemployed. How we are going to do it, we do not quite know yet, but we are definitely making plans to enable our people in Luanshya continue with employment,” he said.

Mr Banda said this was the first step government had taken before it could go into the next course of action regarding the plight of Zambians losing jobs in the mines.

And President Banda said Zambians should be happy that prices of fuel had continued to go down.
He said government would ensure that it sustained prices of petroleum products in the country.

Mr Banda said the prices of fuel could have been lowered further but that government was looking at future economic prospects.

He said he was happy that some millers had started responding positively to the measures government had put in place to stabilise mealie meal prices.

“I hope people have realised that we are a serious government. We listen when our people complain….we try to find workable ways. We are not just talking but we are thinking and working,” Mr Banda said.

He said now that milling companies had started responding positively, it was important for Zambians to concentrate on production so that the country could have enough maize stocks next year to lower prices of mealie meal further.

Mr Banda said he hoped that members of the opposition political parties were also working hard to produce more maize rather than just criticising government.

On Monday, Chimanga Changa Milling Company Limited announced the reduction of mealie meal prices from K55,000 to K45,000 per 25 kilogramme bag of breakfast meal while the roller meal price was reduced from K45,000 to K35, 000 for roller meal.

This followed an assurance of a steady supply of affordable maize to millers by the Food Reserve Agency.

And President Banda said government was working with other countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to provide humanitarian assistance to people living in the worst cholera hit areas of Zimbabwe to avoid further spread of the epidemic.

He said Minister of Health Kapembwa Simbao was working on a plan to send some officers to affected areas that were close to Zambia to assess the situation.

Mr Banda said it was important that human lives were saved from the epidemic rather than just talking about politics all the time.

And the President said people criticising him for going on a holiday when the country had various problems which needed to be addressed should themselves choose between going on a holiday or into the field to work.

Meanwhile, Mr Banda says he will ensure that adequate resources are allocated to repair road infrastructure in the country in next year’s national budget.

He was addressing scores of Mambwe residents upon his arrival at Mfuwe International Airport yesterday.

Mr Banda said government would ensure that roads in the district were rehabilitated to boost the tourism sector which was the economic mainstay of the area.
He said the tourism sector would create employment for the local people once boosted.

Mr Banda said the road infrastructure was damaged, especially in the valley areas.

He said Mfuwe had already started experiencing water logging which could result in floods.

President Banda said government was sensitive to the needs of the people and would ensure everything was done to improve their living standards.

He thanked the people of Zambia for the continued peace in the country, saying people had continued to be peaceful, regardless of calls for them to protest over high prices of commodities.

Mr Banda said government would ensure that the peace being experienced in the country continues to prevail.
Earlier , Eastern Province Minister, Isaac Banda, thanked government for releasing K10 billon for the rehabilitation of major roads in the province.

The President is accomplished by his wife, Thandiwe, children and grandchildren.

Mr Banda was received by Minister of Tourism Catherine Namugala, her Mines counterpart, Maxwell Mwale, Eastern Province permanent secretary, Kelvin Kamuwanga, Chipangali MP, Vincent Mwale, Nyimba MP, Forrie Tembo and several government and MMD party officials.

The Zambia Consumer Association (ZACA) has urged the bus operators and public transporters to immediately reduce bus fares for both domestic and long distance travellers to give the benefits fuel price reduction by the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) yesterday.

And ZACA has also commended Chimanga Changa Milling for reducing mealie –meal prices.

ZACA Programme Officer, Precious Zulu, told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka today that the reduction in fuel pump price should benefit the consumers.

Ms. Zulu said the fuel increase has on many times been blamed for triggering the increased price of essential goods and services, adding that they now expect the same to happen after the reduction.

“Fuel increase sthe cost of production but now that there is a reduction the consumers need to see that prices of goods and services are reduced,” she said.

She also said what Chimanga Changa has done in reducing the price of the staple food should be commended, adding that other millers should emulate the company and reduce the price of the staple food.

Ms. Zulu said she expect the price of goods and services to be reduced this feastive season.

Meanwhile Ms. Zulu said her organization wants to work with other consumer protection bodies and agents like the Zambia Police Service, Zambia Weights and Measures Agency and Health Inspectors to stop companies selling underweight products.

she said her organization has received complaints from consumers that some retail outlets are selling underweight products.

She also disclosed that ZACA will soon conduct the inspection and investigations in the market due to the rampant cheating of consumers by outlets.

Ms. Zulu revealed the Zambia Weights and Measures Agency has since taken Simba Milling to court for selling underweight products.

Zansi

Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane says Zambia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will slow down next year compared to earlier estimates because of the global economic crisis.

Dr. Musokotwane said this is on account of the unexpected slow down in the mining and toursim sectors following the global crunch.

He said this when he issued a ministerial statement in Parliament Friday on the impact of the Global financial crisis on the Zambian economy.

The minister has also warned that low copper prices pause a significant threat to economic growth achieved over the last five years.

The minister however said Government has already initiated dialogue with mining companies to assess how best the impact of the crisis can be mitigated.

He said if the low copper prices continue future investments in copper mining may decline.

Dr. Musokotwane however said the mining sector is still expected to grow next year because production in new mines will start.

Meawhile Dr. Musokotwane said there is a possibility that the financial crisis may affect the 2009 national budget.

Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) Commissioner General, Chriticles Mwansa, said the global financial crisis and the plummeting commodity prices on the international market would negatively affect the revenue take for the year 2009.

Mr. Mwansa, therefore, urged all ZRA members of staff to be proactive and work harder to ensure the organization performs as expected amidst the global financial crisis.

He said this in a speech read for him by medium tax payer organization assistant director Shadreck Kachusha during the end of year party in Solwezi at the weekend.

Mr. Mwansa commended ZRA staff for having exceeded the parliamentary target for the year 2008 despite facing the challenge of unsatisfactory performance of the domestic Value Added Tax (VAT) during the year.

He said in a quest to respond to the challenges of the 21st century, the organization shall consolidate the gains made so far and provide a better tomorrow for the country.

Mr. Mwansa added that ZRA is committed to improving the workplace atmosphere through the provision of the necessary tools and an improved work environment, adding that a corporate office is to be built in line with the development taking place in the district.

He assured the staff that the various HIV/AIDS workplace programmes shall continue and encouraged them to join the contributory scheme on Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART)so that it could be sustained.

Government has maintained its pledge of constructing hostels at the University of Zambia (UNZA) and Evelyn Hone College (EHC) in Lusaka despite withdrawing from the hosting of the 2011 All African Games.

Youth Sports and Child Development Minister Kenneth Chipungu told ZANIS in Lusaka today that government will continue with the project of constructing hostels at the two institutions of tertiary education.

Mr. Chipungu said this was because government was committed to improving infrastructure at the institutions of higher education.

He said government was committed and has goodwill to ensure that infrastructure at colleges and universities was developed and improved in the country.

He said the contractors for building hostels at UNZA and Evelyn Hone College were already on site, adding that construction works have since started.

Mr. Chipungu was hopeful that the construction works would be completed within the stipulated time before 2011.

Meanwhile All Africa Games Organizing Committee Director General, David Diangamo, also confirmed that government will go ahead with the construction of the hostels at the institutions.

Mr. Diangamo however said his committee was facilitating the handover of information to responsible ministries and departments to ensure that the construction of hostels is not halted.

He said the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Education have since been tasked to continue with the construction of the hostels.

University of Zambia and Evelyn Hone College were some of the institutions that would have new hostels constructed and old ones improvement in order to accommodate delegates to 2011 All Africa Games.

A fortnight ago, the Zambia government withdrew from hosting All Africa Games in 2011 citing financial constraints as the main reason for dropping the offer.

ZANIS/GP/KSH/ENDS.