The Ministry of Community Development and Social Services, has procured and handed over agricultural equipment and livestock, valued at over K600,000, to beneficiaries of the Food Security Pack (FSP) programme.
Items acquired include, seven hammermills,one maize sheller,seven heards of cattle,124 goats and five bicycles valued at K635,898.
Apart from empowering vulnerable but viable farmers with agricultural inputs and livehood skills, the programme also encourages beneficiaries to pay back 10 percent of their produce or yields, which is ploughed back into the recoveries account for that particular community to facilitated for other empowerment initiatives.
Speaking during the handover ceremony in Luwingu District, in Northern Province, Director for Community Development, Ms. Patricia Muyamwa, expressed gratitude with the commitment by beneficiaries to pay back from their harvest and encouraged them to be commited in order to improve their welfare.
She said the pay backs have facilitated for the procurement of life changing equipments which will reduce the burden of transport for the Community Welfare Assistance Committees (CWACs), and also reduce the distance to milling and maize shelling facilities.
Ms. Muyamwa further noted that the programme is very sustainable,but requires timely pay backs and recoveries in order to promote food security.
“Government’s priority is to ensure that Zambia feeds itself and also becomes the bread basket for the region, while increasing its agricultural exports globally”, she said
Meanwhile, Luwingu District Commissioner, Mr Chomba Chileshe appreciated the hard work by the Ministry personel in the promotion of national development as well as food security.
He said Luwinguand other parts of the country are poised for more development, going by government’s commitment, through the Ministry of Community Development and Social Services to uplift the living standards of people.
