By JAMES KUNDA –

. LUBINDA

THE Food Reserve Agency (FRA) has maintained the maize floor price for the 2016/2017 crop marketing season at K75 per 50 kilogramme (kg) bag, Agriculture Minister Given Lubinda has said.
Mr Lubinda told Parliament in a ministerial statement yesterday that the agency had targeted to procure one million tonnes of maize from farmers countrywide in the marketing season.
And Mr Lubinda said Government had suspended the export of maize from the 2015/2016 agricultural season until the end of September, this year.
Zambia was envisaged to produce 2,873,052 tonnes of maize in the 2015/2016 agricultural season from 2,618,221 tonnes in the previous season.
Mr Lubinda said following extensive consultations with stakeholders, the FRA purchase price was maintained at K75, which was attractive as some private buyers were buying the grain at prices ranging from K40 to K60 per 50kg bag.
“FRA is expected to enter the marketing season early and as soon as the maize reaches an acceptable moisture content of 12.5 per cent.
“It is envisaged that this will be at the beginning of June and let me add that only Zambian registered companies shall be allowed to participate in maize marketing,” Mr Lubinda said.
He said the agency had already commenced preliminary preparations for the purchasing exercise, with distribution of marketing materials to the provinces and recruitment of staff for satellite depots already underway.
Mr Lubinda said of the one million tonnes which would be procured by the FRA, 500,000 tonnes would be allocated to the strategic grain reserves, while the other 500,000 tonnes would be set aside for price stabilisation.
He said in the 2016/2017 marketing season, the Government would allow government-to-government exports of maize through the FRA or the private sector.
“This will be done after securing the country’s maize requirements. The Grain Traders Association of Zambia has existing export commitments of 167,000 tonnes of maize to neighbouring countries and Government has authorised this quantity to be exported,” he said.
Meanwhile, Home Affairs Minister Davies Mwila told the House, also in a ministerial statement, that the country’s security situation was stable ahead of the general elections in August.
Mr Mwila said officers of the Zambia Police Service, among other security agencies, had undergone training on mechanisms to secure the public before, during and after the polls.
“The command level officers have had training in impartial management and administration of the Public Order Act (POA) and the electoral code of conduct to ensure a level playing field.
“Apart from training of security officers, we have also promoted dialogue with stakeholders and sensitisation of members of the public of the importance of maintaining law and order, on the other hand, is ongoing and shall be sustained until after the elections,” Mr Mwila said.
The minister said the law enforcement agencies had been provided with essential equipment to respond to potential security threats during the polls.