FRIDAY BRIEF WEEK 20, 2015 INDUSTRY UPDATES/ALERTS. THIS Week s Highlights

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1 FRIDAY BRIEF WEEK 20, 2015 THIS Week s Highlights ENERGY REGULATION BOARD INCREASES FUEL PRICES ZAMBIA HAS ENOUGH MAIZE DESPITE LOW YIELDS WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY URGES FARMERS TO FORM WATER USER ASSOCIATIONS SADC-EAC-COMESA FREE TRADE AREA TO BE LAUNCHED ON 10 TH JUNE 2015 IN EGYPT... SEE DETAILED UPDATES BELOW INDUSTRY UPDATES/ALERTS ENERGY REGULATION BOARD INCREASES FUEL PRICES The Energy Regulations Board (ERB) increased pump prices for petroleum products by K1.14 for petrol, K1.00 for diesel and K0.71 for kerosene with effect from midnight of 12 th May The new pump price for petrol is K 8.74 per litre while that of diesel is K7.59 per litre. ERB attributed the increase in the price of petroleum products to the Kwacha volatility which resulted into significant depreciation of the local currency against the United States Dollar. ZAMBIA HAS ENOUGH MAIZE DESPITE LOW YIELDS According to the Crop Forecast Results released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock yesterday, Zambia s 2014/15 maize production dropped by to 2.6 million tons. Despite an increase in the area planted, the national average yield dropped from 2.36 tons per hectare to 1.75tons poor hectare. The yield reductions have been attributed to the poor weather experienced during the seasons. The country is however expected to have a surplus of around 877,000 MT due to a large carry over stock from the previous season. During his announcement of the crop forecast results, the Minister of agriculture and Livestock- Honourable Given Lubinda, stated that the Food Reserve Agency would only purchase 500,000MT of maize at a price to be announced later. He further encouraged private sector participation in the 2015/16 marketing season and indicated that the borders would remain open for maize exports as long as national food security is not compromise. Meanwhile the national Soya beans productions has been forecast up by 5.7 percent to 226,323 MT as the increase in area planted is expected to outweigh the yield reductions. Cotton production has been pegged at 103,889MT. The crop forecast results generally reveal that most crops suffered yield losses. There was however notable increase in the plantings of Irish potatoes especially by the large scale farmer. 1

2 WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY URGES FARMERS TO FORM WATER USER ASSOCIATIONS The Water Resource Management Authority (WARMA) has called on farmers to form Water User Associations in their respective catchment areas in line with the provisions of the new Water Act of This happened during a consultative meeting held between Ngwerere farmers and WARMA representatives on 14 th May 2015 at NRDC in Lusaka. One of the functions of the Water User Associations is to monitor water use in their respective areas in collaboration with WARMA. Farmers were concerned that WARMA had not yet developed guidelines that should be followed when developing Water User Associations. In response, WARMA explained that farmers can still go ahead and form water user associations and notify WARMA for registration. WARMA representatives also indicated that Water User Associations are driven and owned by local people and their structures may be different from area-to-area. During the meeting, farmers complained that Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company s discharge into Ngwerere River has continued to pollute the water, making it unsafe for livestock in the area. To this effect, the meeting resolved that WARMA would hold a meeting with Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company and the Zambia Environmental Management Authority aimed at resolving the issue. Farmers also raised concern on the illegal water users in their respective catchment areas and asked WARMA to ensure that such people are prosecuted. SADC-EAC-COMESA FREE TRADE AREA TO BE LAUNCHED ON 10 TH JUNE 2015 IN EGYPT The big free trade area encompassing SADC, EAC and COMESA is expected to be launched on 10 th June 2015 in Egypt. This big free trade area will have 26 countries including Zambia and other trading partners such as South Africa, Congo DR, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Kenya, among others. However, in view of the amount of outstanding work to implement the SADC-EAC-COMESA Free Trade Agreement, the launch of this big free trade area in June 2015 will only be symbolic as countries will not be able to trade without completing work on applicable duties and rules of origin. In fact the SADC-EAC- COMESA Free Trade Area will not come into force until a minimum of 14 countries sign and ratify the agreement. Once implemented, the big free trade area is expected to offer Zambian farmers and agribusiness players wider access to export markets in the region. It is expected that Congo DR, and Angola will be able to open their markets as part of their commitments under the SADC-EAC-COMESA Free Trade Area. The agreed rules of origin so far for primary agricultural products only allows preferential trade in commodities that have been raised or grown in the region in order to protect farmers from competing with cheap and subsidized commodities from international markets. NEWS FROM ASSOCIATIONS POULTRY ASSOCIATION OF ZAMBIA HYBRID INTRODUCES NEW BIRD ON THE MARKET Hybrid Poultry Farm Zambia Ltd has introduced a new bird called Redbro which will be available this month on the market. It is a red feathered bird with both broiler and layer characteristics meaning that depending on what the farmer wants it can be managed to produce meat or eggs. The new bird will offer poultry farmers who want a bird that is hardy, able to free range and will grow faster than the indigenous birds but require less in terms of inputs. According to Hybrid, the bird is robust to disease and possesses a very rounded conformation, which results in a presentable, well finished broiler with excellent taste. This bird is ideal for the live chicken market due to its reddish brown feathers, which are similar to the indigenous chicken. If the bird has been free ranged it will have a yellow skin colour, which is attractive 2

3 to some customers. When managed as a layer with commercial feeds the bird can start producing eggs at 25 to 27 weeks. However, it is important to note that this bird is not meant to replace the commercial broiler or the commercial layer, as it will not attain the production levels of these specialized hybrids. UPCOMING MEETINGS Beef Stakeholders Meeting on Wednesday, 20 th May, 2015 at ZNFU Offices, Show grounds. Time: 10:00hrs NEWS FROM THE REGIONS EASTERN B REGION PETAUKE DFA RECEIVES GRANT FROM USADF The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) has approved a K 1,013, grant to Petauke District Farmers Association (PDFA) for the expansion of the cooking oil production project. Petauke DFA benefited from an operational assistance grant from USADF in 2012 which improved the financial management and operational capacity for the DFA and it is from this positive and successful implementation of the phase 1 project which has made the USADF to extend their funding even in the second phase. In the second phase the DFA will focus on Increasing or expanding its Ground nuts out grower scheme and its purchasing capability, establish sufficient storage capacity which meets acceptable food safety standards, scale up cooking oil production and improve the marketing of cooking oil in the District and in the entire Province. COPPERBELT REGION KEEGY LIMITED NOW OPENS ITS DOORS TO THE PUBLIC Keegy Limited has now began offering its services to the farming community in Mpongwe and Lufwanyama by hiring out equipment such as shellers, harvesters for both maize and soya beans. In Mpongwe, some small scale farmers have already started hiring the shellers and combine harvesters which they said the prices were very affordable as compared to individual local farmers offering similar services. Farmers spoken to were very elated and promised to support the company as this development was the first of its kind in the district. Keegy limited will officially launch the facility by the end of May 2015, in Mpongwe and Lufwanyama districts, a source has revealed. MUCHINGA REGION TRADITIONAL LEADER STRATEGIZES FOR INCREASED AGRICULTURE PRODUCTION Senior Chief Nkula of the Bemba speaking people of Chinsali has come up with strategies to scale up agriculture in his Chiefdom because the majority of his subjects never take agriculture seriously, resulting into high poverty levels. The traditional leader has put up some strategies which include: 3

4 Setting up of a village committee which will be responsible for giving out traditional land to individual farmers for agricultural purposes, starting from 5 hectares going upwards. Starting with the 2015/2016 farming season, all subjects will be forced to go to their various farms/fields. A scheduled alarm (bell) will be resounding around 08:00hrs every morning to notify farmers to go to their crop fields and this will be under the serious supervision of chief retainers. The senior Chief has also encouraged all civil servants in his area to get land so that they become models to others. The people of Nkula Chiefdom have welcomed these strategies because a lot of people are not farming but concentracting on useless vices such as beer drinking. The Chief informed his subjects of his plans during an agricultural camp show held at Nkula camp in his chiefdom this week on Wednesday. DACO URGES FARMERS TO SAFEGUARD THEIR FARM PRODUCE Mrs. Patricia Lungu, a District Fisheries Officer (FO) for Chinsali, who represented the District Agriculture Coordinator (DACO) at Kampemba Agricultural Show this week Tuesday challenged farmers to safeguard their farm produce after harvesting so that they leave some for home consumption and not sell everything in order to avoid hunger to their homes. The FO observed that farmers have a tendency of asking for relief food from government after they have sold all their farm produce. CONSTRUCTION OF NABWALYA ROAD CHEERS MPIKA FARMERS Farmers in Mpika district have been cheered by the construction of Nabwalya Road. Farmers of Nabwalya chiefdom in Mpika district, which is about 150 Km from Mpika town, have for a long time faced challenges with transportation of inputs and farm produce due to poor road network. The farmers, who usually keep and sale village chickens, have been spending 3 to 4 days walking through the national park to get to Mpika town to do their business. However, their problems will soon be a thing of the past as government has started the construction of the road to the chiefdom and the works are progressing on very well. Most of the farmers talked to during routine Information Centre meetings expressed happiness towards the development. NORTHWESTERN A REGION INCREASE IN FUEL PUMP PRICE RECEIVED WITH MIXED FEELINGS Farmers have received the increase in fuel pump prices with mixed feelings. Most farmers in the region feel that the increase in fuel prices will also increase the cost of doing business more especially during the crop marketing season. The farmers added that transporting crop produce to FRA satellite depots will be more costly. PREPARATIONS FOR SOLWEZI DISTRICT SHOW UNDERWAY Preparations for the Solwezi District Agriculture and Commercial Show which will be held from 29 th to 30 th May, 2015 are progressing well. The show will be themed Innovation beyond the Golden Jubilee. According to the district agriculture show committee, the response from show stakeholders and the farming community has been overwhelming. SOUTHERN A REGION UNDP HOLDS POLICY DIALOGUE ON ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE 4

5 A UNDP stakeholder s dialogue on climate change adaptation was held in Livingstone on 12 May 2015 where ZNFU Livingstone office was invited to be part of. The purpose of the meeting was to raise awareness on adaptation response to climate change. It was also expected that the policy dialogue will enhance climate change mainstreaming in the planning and decision-making process in Agroecological Regions 1 and 2 in Zambia. During the dialogue a number of issues came up from various players in Agriculture, who shared their experiences as regards to the way forward; some of the notable ones being the assessment of community needs before some policies are put forward, the need for documenting of indigenous knowledge and conventional knowledge to build a resilience natural system. WOMEN S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT TASK FORCE SET UP A Women Economic Empowerment Expo Task Force has been set up in southern province and ZNFU Southern A region has been identified and appointed as a member of the task force. The mandate of the task force will be to effectively coordinate the women empowerment expos in the province which will be taking place each year and will run for 5 years starting this year The provincial expos will then culminate into the national expo each year. The main objective of having these provincial expos is to promote economic empowerment by entrenching a culture of entrepreneurship amongst women even those in the rural areas of Zambia through facilitating access to productive resources such as land, finance and credit as well as information. Speaking during the meeting with the task force, the permanent secretary for Ministry of Gender And Child Development emphasized that the task force should make sure that the implementation strategies that are put in place culminate into outcomes that will, among other things, foster the mindset change of women towards enhanced leadership, access to land, increased business development skills and also financial literacy. Also included on the task force are the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Community Development and private sector institutions. INVESTRUST BANK PLC LEASES VEHICLES TO SWASCO Nine (9) utility vehicles and twenty four (24) tri-cycles have been leased to Southern Water and Sewerage Company (SWASCO), a water utility company in Southern Province. This is in order to help the company with service delivery. The handover of the vehicles was done on 14th May Speaking during the handover ceremony, Investrust Bank managing director Dr. Richard K Chembe informed the invited guests that the bank offered a lease finance solution which was available to both individuals and companies. Dr Chembe said the lease finance solution also covers agricultural and farming equipment such as Centre Pivots, Combine Harvesters, and Tractors, among others, which enhance the productivity of farmers. And speaking at the same ceremony, Guest of honour- southern province minister Honorable Nathaniel Mubukwanu implored the gathering and the public at large to take up the opportunity available to them by the bank to grow their businesses. He further requested the bank to translate their brochures into local languages for easy understanding by the locals especially small scale farmers. CENTRAL REGION CHIBOMBO FARMERS PRAISE ZNFU INFORMATION DESERMINATION SYSTEM Farmers in Chibombo are happy with the efforts the ZNFU has put in place and continued to use for the benefit of the farming community as a whole. During the opening of the 38 th Information Center 5

6 (Kayonje) for Chibombo DFA, the newly elected Contact Farmer Mr. Mainza Chipwele cited the Zambian Farmer TV program, as one channel the ZNFU is using to disseminate information and that it is the same TV programme which motivated him to join ZNFU and be part of the farmers that always view farming as a business. Mr. Mainza added that ZNFU needs support from all well-meaning farmers. He further lauded ZNFU for platforms such as the Agritech Expo which he said was a refresher of knowledge. NORTHERN REGION MAL CONDUCTS STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIVE MEETING The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAL) held a stakeholder consultative meeting on the draft Livestock Development Policy. The objective of the meeting was to enable stakeholders comment on the proposed Livestock Policy. During the deliberations, all the stakeholders unanimously submitted that the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock be divided into two Ministries so that the Livestock and Fisheries subsectors can receive more attention. Stakeholders noted that currently government has put more money on crops as compared to Livestock development, hence the need to split the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock into two. REPUBLICAN VICE PRESIDENT VISITS NORTHERN PROVINCE The Republican Vice President, Her Honour Mrs Inonge Wina MP is visiting Northern Province for a 4 days working visit. The Vice President is inspecting various developmental projects in Kasama, Luwingu, Mungwi, Mporokoso and Mpulungu. The farming community in the province are anxiously waiting to hear from her the quantities of maize government will buy this marketing season and the maize floor price. Farmers talked to were optimistic that the Vice President will mention about the maize floor price and quantities of maize government is intending to buy. CONSTRUCTION OF INDO ZAMBIA BANK CHEERS MUNGWI FARMERS Mungwi district has for a long time operated without banking facilities. However, the situation will change for the better with the commencement of the construction of the first ever Bank, Indo Zambia. This has cheered farmers who for a long time have been receiving financial services from Kasama District. LUAPULA REGION NCHELENGE PREPARES FOR THE FIRST EVER PROVINCIAL AGRO TOUR Preparations for the first ever joint agro tour in Luapula province by the government and the Zambia National Farmers Union are progressing well. The tour of agriculture projects in Luapula province is scheduled to take place from 16 th to 23 rd May, The Provincial Minister for Luapula Province, Honourable Benson Kapaya will lead the tour of the province and will be joined by the ZNFU team comprising of Dr. Evelyn Nguleka, the ZNFU President; Mr. Ndambo Ndambo, the ZNFU Executive Director and other ZNFU members of staff. Others to join the tour are MAL officials and members of the press. The delegation will visit various agricultural projects in Milenge, Chembe, Samfya, Mansa, Mwense, Chipili, Kawambwa, Nchelenge, Chienge and Chilubi Island. Preparations for the agro tour in Nchelenge, which is one of the districts to be visited, has reached an advanced stage and all the proposed sites are ready to receive the entourage. Among the sites to be visited in Nchelenge district are the following: 6

7 Cage Culture Fish Project: the project is been implemented by the Department of Fisheries and District Fisheries Association. During the tour, the focus will mainly be on fish caging benefits, environmental impact of fish caging, advantages and disadvantages. Rubber Plantations: Forestry Department manages two unique plantations; the local supply plantation which has 31.5 ha and the Rubber plantation which is about 140 ha planted with rubber species called Hevea brazillensis Village Chicken Multiplication Project: the project is been implemented by Nchelenge District Farmers Association who got funds through Constituency Development Fund (CDF). The project cost is K325, 000. The main aim of the said project is to improve the village chicken breeds in Nchelenge district by introducing improved breeds from Southern Province. NCHELENGE CONTINUES TO RECEIVE HEAVY RAINS Nchelenge District has continued to receive heavy rainfall. The continued rainfall has sent panic among farmers who are now worried that their crops will be damaged by the rains. The district has experienced heavy rainfall in the month of May, WESTERN REGION TOBACCO FARMERS COMPLAIN OF HIGH TRANSPORT CHARGES Japanese Tobacco International (JTI) and Alliance One have centralised the marketing points of Tobacco. JTI will conduct Tobacco marketing at their newly built modern facility called Rosewood in Kaoma district while Alliance One will be at their main depot in Nkeyema. Sources have reviewed that the reason for centralising the marketing points was to reduce on possible risks of side marketing and reducing handling costs among others. But Tobacco farmers in Kalumwange and Chitwa Farming Blocs have complained of the cost of transporting Tobacco which will now be tripled. The farmers are worried that the rise in transport costs will negatively affect the profitability of their crop produce. JTI has completely done away with all their satellite depots. NKEYEMA DISTRICT TO BE CONNECTED TO NATIONAL ELECTRICITY GRID The Rural Electrification Authority will soon connect the newly formed Nkeyema district to the national electricity grid. Nkeyema district happens to be one of the most productive districts in terms of maize and tobacco in the Western Province and will be connected to the national grid like the rest of the country. The connection of district to the national grid will be done at a ceremony to be officiated by the Minister of Energy, Honarable Christopher Yaluma, on 15 th of May, NORTHWESTERN B REGION CHAVUMA DFA MEMBERS TO DIVERSIFY INTO VEGETABLE PRODUCTION Members of Chavuma District Farmers Association (CDFA) of North-Western province are on the verge of diversifying into vegetable production as an income generating venture. To help out in this program, Chavuma DFA board members have come up with a training plan for member farmers in vegetable production. The DFA has through several meetings and interventions realised that farming is not only about Maize production but that there are many other avenues in which they can harness revenue. As result, the CDFA is scheduled to undertake weeklong training program for farmers in vegetable production and management. The training will target four (4) Information Centres (ICs) per day and will run from hours daily, starting from Monday the 18th of May to 22nd May,

8 The DFA vice chairperson, Mr. Richard Manjimela has since called on farmers to take advantage of the training so that that they can benefit from the programme. UPCOMING TRAININGS 2015 SEMINARS AT LIVESTOCK SERVICES DATE COURSE TIME 16 th May, Fish Farming (Aquaculture) ( Lumbo),Free 08:00 to 12:00 23 rd May, Sustainable Village chicken production (Dr. Tembo), Free 08:00 TO 12:00 6 th June, Successful Breeding Programmes in Dairy Cattle Production 08:00 TO 12:00 Free 13 th June, Calf Management (Mr Daka), Free 08:00 TO 12:00 20 th June, Quail Production (Mercy) 08:00 to 12:00 6. Meat processing (Mr Nchito, ) K75 Venue: Daybreak Farm, Kafue Road 27 th June, Pig Production (Dr Mutemwa),Free 08:00 TO 12:00 AGRICULTURAL HOLIDAYS!!!! The following are the Agriculture Public Holidays; New Year s Day - 1 st January Women s Day - 8 th March Good Friday - 3 rd April Labour Day - 1 st May Africa Freedom Day - 25 th May Heroes Day - First Monday in July Unity Day - First Tuesday in July Farmers Day - First Monday in August Independence Day - 24 th October Christmas Day - 25 th December 8