SOME TAKE-AWAYS FROM CAMPAIGN PROMISES ON THE TABLE – CHECKLIST :
By Mark Simuuwe
Repost:
No jokes ! We continue with our Checklist ticking one project at a time ;
1. Free education ✅
2. Reopening Indeni ✅
3. Recruiting youths as teachers and health workers ✅
4. Lusaka – Ndola Dual Carriage way and these roads costing half the PF quoted prices✅
5. Mansa – Nchelenge Road ✅
6. Chingola- Chililabombwe- Kasumbalesa roads ✅
7. Clearing Council Workers arrears left by PF ✅
8. Fertilizer Manufacturing plant construction ✅
9. Buying four turbines each producing 150 MW at Kafue Gorge Lower Power Station ✅
10. Recruitment in military ✅
11. CDF increase and desks , school , health posts and bridges construction ✅
12. Raising Tax threshold to k5100 to exempt all those getting salary below the threshold ✅
13. Agro loans ✅
14. Paying farmers on time ✅
15. Paying retirees ✅
16. Media Freedom ✅
17. Political freedoms ✅
18. Removal of death sentence from our laws ✅
19. Removal of criminal defamation of president✅
20. KCM to open ✅
21. Mopani to resume full operations ✅
22. End thuggery behavior in markets and bus stations – ✅
23. Bringing back those retired in national interest by ECL✅
24. Purchase of 4million doses of animal vaccines ✅
25. Reduced inflation ✅
26. Purchase of 10 milling plants for ZNS ✅
27. Resumption of Farm Block farming ✅
28. Increased allocation to school feeding programme ✅
29. Running a balanced cabinet ✅
30. Uniting the country – continuous process ✅
31. Bringing sanity in national debates by moving away from name calling to debating about issues like mealie meal , fuel etc ✅
32. Recruiting extension officers under Agriculture ✅
33. EU resuming financing Zambia’s budget after stopping due to rampant corruption ✅
34. Allowing Councils to collect levies ✅
35. Giving out CDF without marginalizing ✅
36. Fight against corruption ✅
37. Loadshedding ✅
38. Zero rating importation of electric cars ✅
39. Reduced duty on hybrid cars✅
40. Reintroduce meal allowances and increase number of universities to benefit
41. Kasama Airport construction ✅
42. Markets access agreements with Rwanda , SA , UAE and EU ✅
43. Increased tourism due to relaxing visa conditions unilaterally ✅
44. Electric Car Batteries manufacturing plant ✅
45. Paying 258,000 farmers for the goods supplied to FRA and were not paid by PF ✅
46. Completion of 120 secondary schools abandoned by PF ✅
47. Raising free education access from around 5 million to 10million as at this year 2023 . ✅
48. Paying TAZAMA employees their dues ✅
49. NAPSA partial withdrawal ✅
50. Public universities paying salaries on time ✅
Etc
SHORT TERM MEASURES ON MEALIE MEAL
ZNS EAGLE BRAND MEALIE MEAL
Government has reached an agreement on mealie meal as follows; Starting Sunday, 15th October, 2023 after taking into consideration all expenses on mealie meal production.
(a)All ShopRite stores across the country
1. 25kg Breakfast K230
2. 25kg Roller K190
(b)ZNS Depot across the country*
1. 25kg Breakfast K220
2. 25kg Roller K180
LONG TERM MEASURES :
MEALIE MEAL PRICE AND THE UPND NEW DAWN GOVERNMENT STRATEGY
By Mark Simuuwe
People have been texting me in the inbox on what the solution is by the UPND Dawn Government to mealie meal prices and my response is :
This is an inherited problem which cannot be instantly addressed because the only key players the UPND found are the private sector.
In addressing the problem, the UPND has decided not to let the private sector players alone but to reintroduce activities in farm blocks . As a step of good faith , K1million was released last year to audit the farm block with focus on government allowing ZNS to be a key participant.
In addition , government decided to continue zero-rating all agricultural equipments and accessories to stimulate growth in the sector .
As a strategic framework, government also decided to purchase 10 milling plants so as to easily address mealie meal prices by selling at cost reflective prices and also meet the growing demand in the region which contributed to skyrocketing prices of mealie meal .
For UPND , export of maize which has been seen as a threat on our people ,should be an old perspective , and the UPND is turning this threat into an opportunity for more production to meet the demand .
Contrary to the private sector where profit maximization is centered on paying workers , , transport cost and cost of production, ZNS will produce Meal meal at affordable price without chocking on how they will pay workers and cost of electricity because the workers are civil servants.
With FRA subsidizing maize in times of crisis , ZNS millers will not manipulate its own government because it is part of government.
This increase in supply will force prices to go down because government will not need stressful negotiations with millers but to play in the market economy using ZNS .
Further , government has decided to find an equity partner for a local investor to set up a fertilizer manufacturing plant at a cost of $138million , which when at full capacity shall produce 300,000 metric tons of Urea and 700,000 tons of D-compound . This will also cut down on the cost of transporting fertilizer from the Asian countries thereby having direct effect on the cost of producing maize .
Lastly , government has deliberately come up with cost reflective maize floor price to encourage businessmen who decided to stop engaging in farming due to losses to revert to farming as a business . Since maize growing has now been given business sense .This will encourage production and excess to even export to other markets thereby creating more jobs in the country .
Government has also signed various market access agreements with UAE, Rwanda , South Africa , DRC and China to secure a ready market for the growing agricultural sector.
This market access is very serious and not a talk show . So far , DRC has advanced our government some considerable United States dollars for mealie meal supply and not maize supply . With ZNS milling , government is well- coordinated to take up the market .
President HH also tapped into the Israel Agro-tech for improved agricultural sector. China has also been brought on board to help in the supply chain as participants by way of buying Zambian products , and producing pesticides.
This is a lasting solution to reducing price of mealie meal in Zambia . It should also be noted that maize crisis has been regional in Southern an FCd East Africa and this forced Kenya to import GMOs . To stabilize this crisis will require extra effort by government and its citizens to participate more in growing maize .