Zambia has robust maize stocks and sees little risk in using them to partly fill a regional gap as a supply crunch looms in southern Africa, pushing up futures prices for the staple and accelerating food inflation.
South Africa is now importing maize to make up for deficits due to export commitments, while Malawi, which recorded a series of bumper crops helped by subsidies, has suspended exports because of reported shortages.
But Zambia, which is exporting to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Mozambique, Botswana, Burundi and Namibia, feels it has enough stocks.
“We are monitoring the situation very carefully to ensure that we don’t end up importing maize. I think we are standing on very firm ground in terms of food security,” Zambia’s Agriculture Minister Emmanuel Chenda said.
“We had more than one million tonnes of surplus maize. We decided to export 600,000 tonnes because we didn’t have storage space and so far we have sold 200,000 tonnes,” he said.
But analysts are concerned about Lusaka’s costly spend on maize purchases from farmers, done via the Food Reserve Agency.
Brian Tembo, an Economics Association of Zambia analyst, said the government was buying the maize at above market prices and selling it at reduced prices. He said this meant the government was effectively using “Treasury funds to subsidise the region.”
Zambia harvested 3 million tonnes of maize in the 2010/11 season, from the 2.8 million tonnes the previous season. Zambia’s maize season runs from October to August.
Zambia’s big yields have been attributed to government subsidies to peasant farmers in the form of fertilizer and seeds. However, the crop ultimately depends on rain and the agriculture minister has said the 2011/12 season had gotten off to a bad start because of erratic weather.
[Reuters]
Rubbish maize stocks are being wasted in central Province…..Maize meal still very expensive………….
That is what a president and a party you accuse of having destroyed the country left you to inherit- a Robust food security-by your own words, almost $3 billion dollars in foreign reserves, single digit figure inflation, a B+ credit rating, massively positive current account deficit (import/export cover) and a massive trade surplus. And you call that destroying a nation.
Beat that by end of 2012, we are watching.
ARE YOU SURE IT IS ON FIRM GROUNDS? I WISH YOU EXPORTED THE MAIZE WHICH HAS RUN INTO DEVASTATION FOR WE COULD HAVE MADE A PROFIT OUT OF IT. YOU MAY NOT HAVE STARTED THE MIX-UP BUT YOU COULD ALSO HAVE PREVENTED THE WORST.
JUST FOR YOUR INFORMATION, I FORESEE STARVATION TOWARDS THE END OF 2012 AND IN THE EARLY MONTHS OF 2013. WE ARE STRUCK WITH POOR RAINS WHICH WILL AFFECT OUR HARVEST EXCEPT FOR THE FEW PLACES LIKE THE NORTHERN AND THE LUAPULA PROVINCES WHERE THE RAINS HAVE BEEN PROMISING.
#2 you are living in the past. Let us focus on now and the future. It reminds me of the saying “you are still living in UNIP”
MMD was full of figures so much that we got fed up and kicked them out. Full of figure with millions of Zambians in poverty
Emmanuel Chenda do you even know how maize is planted you are misplaced,that ministry isnt for people like you maybe GBM coz he has a milling company
#3 Well those are the figures your Minister is boasting about here and you thingk that came out of thin air? It took deliberate party policy to deliver what your Minster is boasting about. And yes, we shall look at those figures in 2013. The standard way performance is measured, not by high turn out at the polls of illiterate Kaponyas drunk “with 90 days money in our pocket Tujilijili.”
A well veiled admission of the PF govt predecessor’s enviable and forward-looking attitude.
#5 favourable rain fall is not good party policies. Most of this maize was due to good rains. If it does not rain like it did in 1991, we would be talking yellow maize. I agree I will be comparing these figure in 2032.
Freind the best way to handle issues well is to give credit where it is due. Surely the formergovt did well in this area like many others too. Iam not and will never be MMD. But balobomba abnensu aba, kutashafye yama tamwafwe iyo, or sorry imwe ni don’t kubebe aini? Awe ifwe tulabeba mwe.
“Zambia harvested 3 million tonnes of maize in the 2010/11 season, from the 2.8 million tonnes the previous season”……..# 3 Kci,i thought those are figures? What s wrong with PF and figures? They are not harmful i can assure you.
Nonsense !!!!!!! When your Food Reserve Agency (FRA) can’t pay farmers in time. Up to now some farmers haven’t been paid. Boma la mbuzi zeka-zeka. go to hell FRA. Shiiiiiiit
imwe batu does SATA have a farm? anyway whether your like it or not all these succeses are for MMD .you have failed to distribute inputs efficiently ,failed to pay all farmers ,failed to secure our maize stock you inherited.and now you want to blame the rain…..you are just failures.period
harvest your own, you big mouthed chaps.
Bembas only know stealing period. It’s not PF who brought about the harvest we have shut up and work we are not all uneducated to make intelligent judgement.
It is highly disengenous to claim that the bumper harvests we experienced in the recent past was only due to favourable rain patterns as we had the same during the UNIP years and under Chiluba but did not produce enough maize for our own consumption let alone to export. Deliberate govt policies after the drought and subsequent food shortages of the 2002 growing season led to a policy of subsidising agricultural inputs the results of which we are enjoying today. Is it too much to ask that credit is given where it is due?
I am very delighted Nsama District, the home of Chimbamilonga Constituency, has been created. It is a great development. That area has been left behind miserably. Under Welensky, Nsama Boma was ticking with government offices, a clininc, post office, Petrol station, Police Post, Fisheries, schools  and what-have-you. Today the area is terribly behind in development. This place has been left behind in preference to the boarder town. I hope and pray that we shall once again flourish with various ventures. Many peolple have left our place for Lusaka in search of a better when we can live a better life in Nsama! Thanks Sata and PF. We really understand that you mean well for all people in Zambia. Our agricultural harvest shall get to great heights and we shall beat hunger there.Â
We need to stop subsidizing the AGro market. A lot of money is tied to the rotting maize which is usually of poor quality…..It would help if the Govt contracted private companies to manage stocks on behalf of FRA. FRA has no capacity to handle grain due to corruption in the system. Let the private sector procure strategic reserves for the GOVT since they have the capacity and prudent management of the grain. they have the know how of the export and quality.
FRA pay the farmers nowwwwwwww. *****s
Stop exporting maize because tomorrow you will have none of it to feed the nation. Chenda doesn’t understand anything. A global food crisis has hit many continents including America. See how foolish we are; South Africa are stocking for the future because there is no guarantee that there shall be food in 2013.What is wrong with this feeble minister?
I had a dream that a bag of 25 kg mealie meal was costing 85 pin and I was sweating to raise the cash to buy one although there were enough stocks in Shoprite for me to buy. I felt happy and relieved when I woke up since it was just a mere dream. I am sure a 25 kg bag will soon cost 25 pin. Well done pf!
VIVA RB. I wonder how many bumper harvests the country will have under Poor f..kers. They are now blaming the rains. Blame it on the rain.
I saw prophecy by JB Joshua that there will famine in Zambia in 2012.
FACTS 1. You cant keep excess stock if you have no storage capacity.
2. The maize was sold at the market price. 3. Brazill and Algentina produced alot of maize last two years which brought down world price. In the region, malawi also had a bumper haverst. 4, As long as gvt continue subsidising fertilizer and we receive good rainfall, maize production will continue to be high, wether MMD or PF. Good move Mr Minister, sale as much and creat space for next harvest.
We seem to be exporting all the good maize and retain rotten one. Remember those cases where fake payments were made but no maize delivered!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
#23 Mulenga JJ, The maize we have in silos and warehouses is all of good quality.Remember it was financed by two banks who always demand for quality guarantee. So dont worry, you will continue enjoy ka bwali, ie if you are in ZM.
BWANA, MINISTER ITS NOT ONLY MAIZE THAT YOU SHOULD ENCOURAGE ZAMBIANS TO BE FEASTING ON. THERE’S PLENTY OF SWEET and IRISH POTATOES IN ZAMBIA. THERE’S ALSO PUMPKINS, CASSAVA, YAMS, PLANTAINS, UMUMBU, ETC. TEACH ZAMBIANS TO DIVERSIFY ON STARCH SOURCES AND THERE WILL BE FOOD FOR EVERYONE IN ZAMBIA. THE MEDIA- ZNBC, RADIO STATIONS, NEWSPAPERS CAN DESIGN PROGRAMS TO TEACH ZAMBIANS HOW TO PREPARE DIFFERENT DISHES LIKE OUR WESTERN AFRICAN FRIENDS TO MAKE EATING LIFE EVEN CHEAPER. COME ZAMBIANS, BUSHE KABWALI FYE LYONSE?
IT’S GOOD NEWS THAT YOU ARE EXPORTING AKABWALI TO ALL THESE NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES. BUT, YOU SHOULD ALSO LEARN TO TEACH PEOPLE TO USE OTHER SOURCES OF STARCH. IN FACT MU ZAMBIA TAMWABA NSALA. MWABA FYE UBUPUBA BWA KA FIVE FINGERS. ZAMBIANS ARE ALWAYS NOT INNOVATIVE. IT’S A SHAME. GOD GAVE US ABUNDANT FOOD RESOURCES BUT WE ARE SO DUFT.
Good work MMD
Tread carefully on this one and keep in mind that affordability of the staple is paramount for the general public. Probably the more of the surplus we have the more distant will price increases on this commodity become.
Now focus on umunani nga natukwata ubunga!
When they want to portray a good picture of themselves they say “unlike the previous government, the PF government is doing this and that…”. But when they want to take credit and reap where they did not sow, they conveniently forget to mention “the previous government”. Why not just swallow your silly pride, parties come and go but governments are perpetual. Everyone knows that all sensible governments build on the works of the previous governments, PF cannot change that fact no matter what they do or don’t do.
“South Africa is now importing maize to make up for deficits due to export commitment ……..But Zambia, which is exporting to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Mozambique, Botswana, Burundi and Namibia, feels it has enough stocks”. Reuters, don’t say ‘but Zambia’, say ‘but PF…’, we Zambians have no say over what PF wants to do, we just hear surprise statements from George Chellah every morning when we wake up.
@30 hope, what can you say if you are not in goverment or working for line ministries which deals with food security. Join the Minsrty of Agri or FRA and you will find very qualified doctors and master degree holder who are behind this maize issue. The minister just announces recommendations from such proffessionals. DONT DEMEAN PF PEOPLE OF GOD, SUPPORT THEM THEM THEY MEAN WELL FOR THIS COUNTRY.
#2 Very well put Bootlicker.Some people couldn’t be objective so they just looked at the person or the party and didn’t like it.They are just like some racists who see good performance but because it comes from a race they detest they decide to kick ’em out anyway.Objectivity and pride never mix well for purposes of progress.You can have one but never both at the same time.