By CHUSA SICHONE
PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu, through the Presidential Empowerment Initiative Fund, has given K300,000 to Luburma Market traders at Lusaka’s Kamwala trading area whose shops were recently burnt in an inferno.
Presidential Fund national patron Chanda Kabwe, who confirmed this in an interview at the weekend, said President Lungu released the K300,000 on Thursday last week as a way of cushioning the loss the 120 traders suffered when their merchandise was burnt.
“Just on Thursday, His Excellency the President released K300,000 for the marketeers at Kamwala in Lusaka, the ones whose shops were burnt because you know that their goods and capital were burnt to ashes,” he said.
Recently, Lusaka Province Minister Japhen Mwakalombe in collaboration with the provincial administration opened up an account with the blessings of President Lungu for the affected Luburma Market traders in which well-wishers were implored to channel their contributions.
Meanwhile, Mr Kabwe, who is Central Province Permanent Secretary, said the Presidential Empowerment Initiative Fund had since inception nearly two years ago spent between K8 million and K10 million in assisting about 13,000 marketeers.
The beneficiary marketeers are from the Copperbelt, Northern, Eastern, Muchinga and Central provinces, with the latest being those in Lusaka Province.
Mr Kabwe said the Presidential Fund was targeting to empower 15,000 marketeers countrywide and that the assistance was not only in monetary form but it also encompassed tools such as bicycles,
motorbikes and groundnut grinders, among others.
Mr Kabwe further said that the Presidential Fund was building ablution blocks for marketeers at Fisenge and Baluba in Luanshya.
“The challenge has always been that the people we are empowering are failing to pay back, the repayment is very bad, marketeers do not pay back, because of the new strategy, we have learned our lessons from where we are coming from. I am sure now there will be an improvement, that marketeers will be able to pay,” he said.
Mr Kabwe reiterated that the Presidential Fund was a non-political initiative and that some marketeers who were empowered were not paying back the interest-free loans because they viewed it as such.
He said the Presidential Initiative had proved that it was non-political as marketeers, regardless of political affiliation, had benefited and would continue to do so, even beyond the period for election campaigns.