PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema has expressed confidence in his administration for largely bringing back the mining sector to what it was in the 1980s, when it was mostly successful and stronger.
Speaking at the Presidential Annual Greetings of the diplomatic corps in Lusaka yesterday, President Hichilema stated that the mines were drastically down when the UPND government took office but they are now restored back to life and highly contributing to the growth of the economy.
“All the old mines are back including those that had shut down for 46 years. Kalengwa mine was shut for 46 years. Thank you for the British investors that are going back to the Kalengwa mine. Chinese ambassador thank you for Luanshya Mine, for 23 years. In fact [at] Kalengwa, all the presidents before me left it closed, [since] President Kaunda, and so it was a delight to be in Kalengwa.”
“Luanshya Mine and its investment and dewatering are fantastic to us. Restoring First Quantum, Lumwana mine, Mopani mine, Abhu Dhabi team. I also want to thank those who have helped us following the trips we made into EU, US, China, one of the projects we are proud of is Ming’omba. Out of the trips, conversations [went] very rapidly. Now we have probably the richest mine in our country,” said President Hichilema.
He added that the country has so far proceeded with exploration in geo physical mapping around the country and the indications given early are promising.
Meanwhile, the Head of State announced that the country’s agriculture sector would have been reasonably restored if there was no drought.
President Hichilema said the country will now pay particular attention to gravitate agriculture into one that will produce the minimum quantity of food that the country needs for both human and animal consumption.
“We hope the rains don’t stop before end of March so we restore our agriculture sector but there’s still a lot to rebuild what we lost during the worst drought in living memory. The drought hammered us in 2024. We will have reasonably restored our agriculture sector. It brought about food and enegy insecurity and the economy down.”
“One of my fears was us having a decline in economy. Going to 2025, the president is going to pay particular attention to gravitate agriculture to produce the minimum quantity of food that we need for our human and animal consumption. And we are still endowed with water. If we had focused on irrigation agriculture some ten years ago, one, two years of drought, we would still have enough food. So we want to be in that position in two years from now very ambitious,” said the President.
He reiterated that the target for maize still stands at 10 million tonnes in order to make Zambia a bread basket for the region.
“We want to produce 10 tonnes per hectare. We want joint investments in agriculture. This is an opportunity not a challenge. This year we will put much effort. Africa is a continent of young people and we want to create jobs for them, we need to expand the economy,” explained President Hichilema.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba, January 24, 2025
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THE Ministry of Labour and Social Security has called on all employers to submit employment relationship statistics, warning that failure to comply will attract penalties.
In a statement issued by the Ministry of Labour Principle Public Relations Officer, Mwaka Ndawa, Labour Commissioner Givens Muntengwa emphasised that it is a legal obligation for employers to provide labour statistics under the Employment Code Act No. 3 of 2019.
Muntengwa stated that the labour statistics are important in improving employment conditions as they can enable the ministry to track labour market trends and make informed policy interventions.
He said the labour laws require employers to submit and maintain accurate statistics on employment relationships.
Meanwhile, Muntengwa expressed concern that some employers have failed to comply with these requirements, impeding the Ministry’s ability to maintain an updated administrative database.
This, he noted, impends the ministry’s efforts to address key labour market challenges effectively.
“Employers who fail to comply with the legal requirements risk facing sanctions under Sections 12(3), 133(1), and 135 of the Act,” Muntengwa explained.
However, to meet their obligations, employers are required to submit hard copies of employment statistics to the Labour Commissioner’s office or via post.
“Soft copies by email to [email protected] and copied to Assistant Labour Commissioner Mrs. Mukamasole M. Kasanda at [email protected],” he stated.
Muntengwa also reiterated the requirement for wages to be paid in Zambian Kwacha, in line with Section 67(1) of the Employment Code Act.
“While employees may choose their preferred mode of payment such as postal order, money order, cheque, or electronic payment, wages must be denominated in the national currency.”
“The law is clear wages shall be paid in Kwacha. Non-compliance will attract necessary sanctions,” added Muntengwa.
By Buumba Mwitumwa
Kalemba January 3, 2025
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AGRICULTURE Minister Reuben Mtolo has highlighted the success of input distribution under both the Electronic Voucher (e-voucher) and Direct Input Supply (DIS) modalities.
Mtolo said nationwide, more than 99 percent of verified farmers have redeemed their inputs.
“As of December 26, 2024, 1,023,988 farmers had deposited their contributions, amounting to K409,595,200.00, with 1,016,054 of them successfully redeeming their inputs,” Phiri disclosed.
Phiri also noted that the 2024/25 farming season e-Voucher rollout was a resounding success.
“As of 26th December, 2024, out of the 739,266 farmer beneficiaries, 738,816 representing 99.9 percent had deposited for their inputs and of which, 731,010 representing 98.9 percent successfully redeemed their inputs,” he said.
“A total of 631 agro input suppliers were engaged to supply inputs to farmers. These included 25 seed companies, 30 fertilizer and agrochemicals companies, and 576 agro dealers. These operated 1,056 branch outlets across the 74 participating districts under the e-Voucher.”
Mtolo said the system has not only streamlined input distribution but also allowed farmers to select inputs tailored to their needs, boosting productivity.
He said the system has also created opportunities for agro-SMEs and rural youth while improving liquidity through timely supplier payments.
“The input distribution under the Direct Input System (DIS) across 42 districts was highly successful, with 42,775.20 Metric Tons (MT) representing 100 percent of Compound D and 100 percent of Urea fertilizers distributed, along with all contracted seeds.”
“As of 26th December, 2024, out of the 285,168 targeted farmers, a total of 285,044 beneficiaries representing 99.96 percent had successfully redeemed their farming inputs,” said Mtolo.
Local fertilizer producers, including United Capital Fertilizer (UCF) and Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ) Limited, played a key role in ensuring timely delivery of the inputs and the minister could not hide his pride in Government’s efforts of positive segregation to support the companies producing fertiliser in the country.
By Moses Makwaya
Kalemba December 30, ,2024
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