By SYLVIA MWEETWA –

THOUGH Zambia is endowed with abundant mineral resources, agriculture has for a long time been tipped as an alternative national economic mainstay.
Like in other agriculturally-dependent economies, the sector requires massive infrastructure and manpower development.
The recently held  two-day AgriTech Expo in Chisamba’s Central Province was, therefore, a timely occasion that gave an outlook of hope that Zambia’s farming industry was headed for positive growth.
The Expo was also an opportunity to showcase the farming technology and innovations that addressed the needs of different categories of farmers in Zambia.
With Zambia’s vast expanse of land of 752,000 square kilometres (75 million hectares), extensive surface and underground water resources amounting to about 40 per cent of the water resources available in Southern Africa, good soils, good climate and a relatively low population of about 14 million people, Zambia is fertile land.
Even with such advantages, agriculture is already a success story in Zambia going by huge potential for the production of a broad range of crops, fish and livestock.
To confirm the farming crusade, national development plans well-documented agriculture to be a diversification agenda the country ought to explore.
However, it is of great interest to further note that the huge God-given potential for agriculture in Zambia is currently grossly under-utilised and has not been fully exploited.
The Expo was held against the fact that 58 per cent of the total land area of Zambia or 42 million hectares is classified as of medium to high potential for agriculture purposes, yet only 15 per cent of this agricultural land is currently being used for crop production.
Further revelations indicate that the huge water resource available meant that Zambia can irrigate itself all-year-round.
This fact also addresses the notion by the Ministry of Agriculture which estimates 38 per cent of the country’s irrigation potential has being utilised.
It also reaffirms Zambia’s four-times grazing land suitable for livestock development than arable land and that production of livestock and fisheries is far from adequate or optimum.
From that Expo, it was clear that prospects for increasing the expanse of cultivated land and the volume of agricultural production are high.
Agriculture Minister Wylbur  Simuusa, who officiated at the Expo which was organised by the Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) was right when he stated that time had come to “put the money where our mouth was”, and this is on food production.
He was spot on to state that Government was committed to making agriculture the future of our economy.
Mr Simuusa’s statement is supported by the vast opportunities which include, export markets for surplus agricultural production considering that the country has consistently produced more grains (maize and wheat/flour) and oil seeds than what was consumed locally.
“The country should take advantage of markets in Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) for the exportable surplus.
This will not only stimulate further production by farmers but will also contribute to increased revenue through export earnings, “Mr Simuusa said.
He indentified the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as a very important strategic market for Zambian agricultural products.
This was due to DRC’s proximity and unlimited commodity demand and that in order to take full advantage of that market, Zambia would accelerate efforts to finalise and implement the pending bilateral trade agreement between the two countries.
He also explained that Zambia’s irrigation potential was estimated at 520,000 hectares and out of this, only 156,000 hectares had been developed for irrigation.
Mr Simuusa said that there was still huge untapped potential for irrigated crops such as fruits, vegetables, wheat and that upgrading of defunct dams would contribute to increased accessibility to irrigation facilities by emergent and small scale farmers.
He said strong growth of the poultry sector made a huge impact on soya beans production due to the unprecedented growth in the poultry sector driven by the increasing demand for chicken meat in Zambia, soya beans production which has increased from 118, 794 metric tons in 2009 to about 210,000 metric tonnes in 2013.
The upward growth in soya beans production provides more opportunities for feed manufacturing and edible oil processing in the country and that agro-processing opportunities were available in many areas such as tomato, water melon, banana and pineapple which can be used for caning and juicing.
In his words, Mr Simuusa said that investing in agro-processing would not only increase demand for primary products from farmers but also contribute to poverty reduction through employment creation.
And Central  Province  Permanent Secretary Edwidge Mutale said increasing population in Zambia coupled with rapid pace of urbanisation has further stimulated demand for livestock products such as goats, pork, and beef and that livestock production was an all-year-round income earner for farmers which should be nurtured for exports.
Ms Mutale, however, said inadequate accessibility to affordable finance by small-scale farmers adversely affecting them and that commercial bank’s interest rates were still beyond the reach of most small-scale farmers in Zambia.
She said that most small-scale farmers do not have title deeds for their land, making it difficult for them to access loans from commercial banks.
She further cited limited mechanisation among small-scale farmers as most of them were still using basic technologies in their production systems, contributing to low productivity and that limited agro processing capacity had aggravated exports of raw materials for most agricultural products.
She said she was happy that the Expo exposed both small-scale and commercialfarmers and was confident that once  resolutions were implemented, it would bear fruit.
And ZNFU president Evelyn Nguleka was optimistic that the 2014 Expo was a platform on which new  farming technologies trends were shared.
She  said it was possible for Zambia to become the food basket of other neighbouring countries but bemoaned the high cost of doing business.
It is clear that Government’s interest was to provide conducive business environment to facilitate the development of agriculture, while at the same time promoting production of oilseeds such as soybeans, sunflower, and groundnuts, aimed at encouraging crop diversification.
The Expo was an eye opener which calls for effectively increased investment in the agricultural sector in Zambia which in turn would enhance production for both the domestic and export market within the region and beyond.
The Agritech Expo, therefore, played an important role in supporting Government’s efforts of developing the agricultural sector by bringing together some of the industry’s leading suppliers, manufacturers, retailers, agents and service providers into one location to showcase the latest in agriculture technologies and farming solutions.
As the province progresses in various key sectors of the economy, Zambians looks forward to seeing a successful farming industry for the benefit of local people and contribute to the country’s development.