President Hakainde Hichilema hosted a pivotal meeting at State House, bringing together the Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) and key representatives from Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies involved in agriculture. The discussions focused on developing collaborative strategies to mitigate the devastating impact of what has been described as the worst drought in a century.
The severe drought has significantly disrupted Zambia’s food and energy security, putting immense pressure on the nation’s agricultural sector. Acknowledging the indispensable role of farmers in combatting hunger and drought, President Hichilema reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to open dialogue and cooperation with stakeholders as the country looks ahead to a potentially favorable rainy season.
“Our farmers, in partnership with the government, are indispensable in combating the effects of drought and hunger. As the adage goes: no farmer, no food, no future,” President Hichilema emphasized.
Key outcomes from the meeting included a pledge to tackle critical issues faced by farmers, such as ensuring the timely payment for their produce, accelerating the delivery of farming inputs, and eliminating systemic bottlenecks hindering progress. These measures aim to bolster agricultural productivity and strengthen the resilience of the sector.
The President also called on all Zambians to contribute to national food security by cultivating wherever possible to bolster the country’s food basket. “We urge every citizen to contribute by cultivating wherever possible, strengthening the nation’s food basket and reinforcing our collective food security,” he said.
With the nation united in addressing these challenges, the government expressed hope that proactive measures and collaboration with farmers would pave the way for a more secure and prosperous future.
Some parts of PHI, we don’t have ZESCO power for 2 days now, this drought is too much
If HH had of stepped into this zesco issue from day one maybe we would be in a better postion,
drought conditions can be lessened as most crops have an early maruring viarity
How is agriculture going to meaningfully take off amidst crippling power shortages? The fierce urgency of now is power, and this should be the priority. Tafyakaisove…
It appears only 2 of us are concerned about thhhis issue
Is it because 70% of the population reside in out lying areas and dont give a damn
I have said many times this will be his Nemesis
This drought started a long time ago with its severity increasing with each. I never heard this gentleman call for unity especially where power shortages were concerned. Instead he took it as an opportunity to convince people that this was due to incompetence
Drought effects will minimised if we concentrate on tackling energy
Crises first.stop focussing on CDF
And bring that money into energy
Sector.
Coming from a person who sold the country’s strategic food reserves and said Dubai does not have rains but they have electricity all year. This is not the first drought this country has had. His tribal brother Nkombo has still not explained his Chembe river strategy upto now. The best Nkombo has done is force a minor to drink Kachansu. Zambians wake up! these people are failure. The earlier we get rid of them, the better.