Government says the setting up solar milling plants under the Presidential solar milling programme will significantly reduce the high mealie-meal prices in the country.
Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe says government has managed to set up the milling plants resulting in a reduction of commodity prices in some parts of the country.
Mrs Mwanakatwe says she is happy that citizens are now able to buy a 25 kilogram bag of mealie meal at 65 kwacha.
She was speaking when she commissioned a 10-tonne solar milling plant in Bauleni Township in Lusaka.
And Zambia Cooperative Federation -ZCF- Director General James Chirwa said One hundred and 20 milling plants are now operational.
Mr. Chirwa says the development will enable the country to be food secure through production of affordable mealie meal.
He said consumers should not panic about food security because there is enough maize to feed the population up to the next farming season.
How do you breakeven if the price of maize is K75/50kg,? And who subside, obviously its the farmer who bought fertilizer at very high price of K400.00 per bag.
Last I heard, they were not working… or they didn’t know how to use them. Welcome to Zambia!
Excellent investment. PF is doing somethings right and deserves support from the public.
You dont know how much they paid for each of these selfsame Chinese solar hammermills from this unaccountable presidential slash fund yet you call it an investment
Former Minister, you mean? Please, don’t give credit were it’s not due.
Those plants only have a max capacity of 80 bags pd as advised in the manual. Zambian real life standards will be about 65 bags pd.
That will not be enough to make a significant dent.
It is short term mitigating factor & the poor Zambian still remains un empowered. Those plants will soon breakdown one by one & will never be repaired just like the vehicle testing, driving license, NRC equipment where people are waiting for 3 months before they get their documents. Can hungry people also wait for 3 or more months on an empty stomach? Your former predecessors introduced salaula for the poor, now everyone is in it degrading the nation. The answer is empowering citizens with earning capacity, shares & investment opportunities in those solar milling plants because the are ones paying TAX not entrusting them with ZCF who are same as Lubinda & FRA.
what price was a bag of meal meal when you took over madam? so to mwanakatwe K65 is cheap?
Comment:stupid power hungrier haynas who cannot appreciate but ever condems best…giv us yo project now …..we giv leadership…..abit abit makes a bundle…..ecl dont answer back to satanic hh and cadres God chose you togethet with him we shal progress….AMEN AMEN…
How is this going to make mealie meal cheaper when the cost of solar power is nearly 3X as much per KWH as hydropower?
Obviously the capital cost and repayment with interest has not been included.
So who is paying those costs?
THE ZAMBIAN TAXPAYER!!!!