zambia anticipates bumper harvest

By James Muyanwa
ZAMBIA is poised for another bumper harvest for maize in the 2009/10 farming season, figures from some leading farming districts have indicated.

Some districts in the country are primed to double their last year’s production figures and that would bolster the national output for the national staple food.

Last season the country recorded about 1.9 million tonnes of maize production and the figure is likely to be surpassed this year.

Kalulushi district commissioner Joshua Mutisa said in Kalulushi recently that the Copperbelt Province district was projecting to harvest nearly 10,000 tonnes of the country’s staple food following the good rainfall received.

Mr Mutisa said the nearly 10,000 tonnes expected in the district was more than twice the estimated 4,000 tonnes recorded last season and attributed the expected bumper harvest to the current sound economic policies.

In Kalomo district acting district commissioner, Justus Phiri said that the district was projecting to harvest about more than 400,000 tonnes and that the farmers in the district are still stuck with some of last year’s produce.

He said 18,040 small scale farmers received the subsidized input under the government’s Farmers Input Support Project (FISP) during the season and that greatly contributed to the bumper harvest.

Chibombo district commission Philip Chabakale said the Central Province district anticipated to produce 300,000 tonnes of white maize this season saying that would be a great improvement on last year’s figure which he could, however, not mention.

Colonel Chabakale said the district had six farming blocks, 30 camps and 40,000 small scale farmers.

He said the maize production could have been in higher but areas like the Mushikili ward and a few others were affected by some floods due to high rainfall pattern experienced.

Serenje district Stanley Chibwana said the district expected a bumper harvest this farming season but could not disclose the projected details.

Mr Chibwana said that Serenje the small scale farmers in the district were happy about the way the FISP was being administrated and was confident the support would result in improvement of the sector.

Kapiri Mposhi district administrative officer, Brave Mazuba said the area is poised for another high production this season.