Two senior citizens in Chinsali District of Muchinga Province have advised the Government to take advantage of good rainfall patterns in the northern part of the country to grow more food for the nation. Mr Oliver Mulenga and Aggrey Musamba made the appeal on Monday during a stakeholders’ meeting with the Permanent Secretary for Special Duties at Cabinet Office, Patrick Mucheleka.
The duo proposed that if the Government can commercialise and support more farmers with meaningful farming inputs and a variety of crops to feed, the nation can be assured of adequate food.
Mr Mulenga, who is a fish farmer and retired civil servant, said there is a need to engage cooperative officers to scrutinise the cooperatives and ensure that serious farmers who understand the concept of agribusiness are supported with inputs.
He further stated that it is high time that Zambians started taking farming seriously and ensure that only those that can expand their maize field access input support under the Farmers Input Support Programme.
Mr Mulenga advised that Chinsali needs to start exporting value-added products such as mealie meal and appealed to the Government to revamp the milling company in the district.
Meanwhile, Musamba also stressed the need for the Government to facilitate the establishment of a milling company in Chinsali, which he said will add value to the agribusiness activities in the district.
He further pointed out that poultry and aquaculture have expanded at a rapid pace, but noted that what is discouraging other farmers is the high price of feed for chickens and fish which currently is sourced from Lusaka.
Mr Musamba proposed that if the old Chinsali milling was to be revamped, it could start producing poultry and fish feed thereby lessening the cost as farmers would no longer have a burden to travel to Lusaka to buy feed.
He added that if this is achieved, fish will be affordable in the district while the surplus will be sold to other districts.
Source: Lusakatimes
