PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema has assured farmers that he will this week hold a special meeting with the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), minister of Agriculture, Commerce and Industry, and cabinet office to ensure all the maize produced by farmers is bought and paid for.
Speaking in Mpongwe yesterday during celebrations to mark 120 years of the Baptist Church’s existence in Zambia, President Hichilema expressed displeasure that farmers were being made to wait while their grain risked going to waste due to delays, lack of grain bags and insufficient weighing scales.
“I have heard that FRA is not swift in buying the maize, the grain bags are not in sufficient quantities, the scales…,” he said.
“From here, this is Sabbath, this coming week, I’m getting a special meeting in Lusaka to whip everybody, FRA, minister of Agriculture, Commerce, cabinet office. So that we work together to ensure that all the maize that our hard working farmers have produced is bought and paid for and transported into safe shelves, so that it’s not spoiled, that is why you put us in public office.”
The President said he was aware of inconsistencies in the handling of the crop marketing season and insisted his government would not allow poor coordination to undermine farmers’ efforts.
He also thanked Copperbelt farmers for responding to his call to contribute to the bumper harvest despite what he described as the worst drought in living memory.
“I want to use this opportunity to thank the Copperbelt for answering this President’s call to caontribute to the bumper harvest after the worst drought in living memory,” stated the President.
He assured farmers that government would continue working on long-term solutions such as energy and water harvesting projects to cushion the impact of climate shocks.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba, August 24, 2025
