ZAMBIA ACCESSES US$24.8 MN FOR AGRO-DEVELOPMENT

The multi-national debt level for Zambia is set to grow, with an extra 24.8 million dollars, the country will access from the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

The money is meant to accelerate growth in smallholder agriculture and reduce rural poverty.

Samuel Mapala, Zambia’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Agency signed the financing agreement on behalf of the country while Kanayo F. Nwanze, President of IFAD signed on behalf of his organisation.

Agriculture, which is becoming an important sector for Zambia’s economic development contributes nearly 22 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product.

And about 60 per cent of the population depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, especially in the rural areas therefore the sector being of priority to Zambia’s economic diversification plans.

The new programme will focus on increasing the production of cassava, mixed beans, groundnuts and rice.

It will complement the on-going IFAD-financed Smallholder Agribusiness Promotion Programme by enhancing the on-farm productivity of smallholder farmers, enabling them to respond to emerging market opportunities.

In addition, the programme will sustainably improve income levels, food and nutrition security for poor agricultural households in the areas covered by the programme.

Co-financed by the government of Finland through a 7 million dollars grant, the programme will be implemented in northern Zambia.

It will start in eight districts of two provinces, Luapula and Northern, gradually expanding to cover up to 24 districts.

More than 60,000 smallholder farming households, of which half are women farmers, will benefit directly from the programme.

With this new project, IFAD will have financed 12 programmes and projects in Zambia for a total investment of 180.1 million dollars benefitting 601,280 households.