.Chenda

By MOFFAT CHAZINGWA and JAMES KUNDA –
GOVERNMENT has encouraged the private sector to take advantage of the favourable business environment in the country and set up milling plants in rural areas.
Agriculture and Livestock Minister Emmanuel Chenda said Government had continued to focus on Private Sector Development (PSD) reform programme with a view to promoting the flourishing of private companies.
Mr Chenda said one area of investment Government was encouraging under the PSD was the establishment of milling plants around the country particularly in rural areas.
The minister was reacting to calls on Government to set up milling plants under the umbrella of the proposed Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) in rural parts of the country to help stabilise prices of mealie-meal.
“We are looking at encouraging private millers to invest in rural areas because it does not make economic sense for maize to be transported  from rural areas to town centres for milling and then back only to be sold at higher prices,” Mr Chenda said.
Meanwhile, Government has maintained the ban on maize exports but will only allow it under the exceptional government-to-government agreements.
Agriculture and Livestock deputy minister Luxon Kazabu said this would mean Zambia can only export maize to other countries as relief food and not as an ordinary commodity for sale.
“Maize export permits are not open-ended because Government cannot afford to risk food security and value addition. Maize can only be exported through government-to-government agreements and formal measures are being implemented to this end,” he said.
Mr Kazabu pointed out that Government, which does not intend to establish state-owned milling plants, wants the private sector to fully operate them.
Government would only facilitate the provision of raw materials such as maize and allow the private millers to add value to it.
Zambia last year produced 2.5 million tonnes of maize and the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) has so far exported 32,175 tonnes out of 205,000 tonnes of the commodity allocated to three countries under the government-to-government agreements.
From the total export allocation, Zimbabwe would be given 150,000 tonnes of maize, Malawi 35,000  while Tanzania will receive 20,000 tonnes.