WB pledges more project

...Shakafuswa asks British envoy

A UK-funded conservation farming project meant for Zambia has failed to take off despite £25 million being released to a British based firm that paid itself and other affiliates in full. Now, local businessman, Ephraim Shakafuswa has asked the British High Commissioner to explain irregularities surrounding the £ 25 million given to Conservation Farming Unit (CFU) whose programme was not implemented in 2016. Mr Shakafuswa contends that the scandal was more serious than the British decision to recall monies meant for social cash transfer. In a letter dated October 1, 2018 and addressed to British High Commissioner to Zambia, Fergus Cochrane-Dyet, Mr. Shakafuswa reminded the United Kingdom that the DFID Climate Smart Agriculture Zambia Programme (CSAZP) was never implemented despite gobbling such a colossal amount of money. He said that when the money was released to CFU, the unit hired and paid between £ 70,000 to £ 90,000 pounds to Adam Smith International (ASI), a British consultancy firm to set up a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system. He said ASI subcontracted VUNA, its subsidiary company, to implement the project and that ASI was hired based on recommendation from a consultant recommended to DFID by ASI itself. Extracts from the final grant letter for the CSAZ programme and mission reports read: “It is recommended that ASI as DFID’s service provider to its regional climate smart programme (CSAP), is contracted to undertake this task. The work should be undertaken immediate the evaluability assessment has been completed and no later than March 2016 to coincide with the start-up of programme activities.” Mr. Shakafuswa said ASI received full payment but never delivered or set up the contracted M & E system and that the work was contracted without a scope of work for the undertaking and at the time, ASI’s credibility was highly questioned by the British press. “Perhaps you can answer some of the questions on my mind. How was ASI contracted? Where was the bidding done for the work to be done in Zambia? Did ASI pay any taxes related to this work in Zambia? “I look forward to your tweet over this matter which is more serious than the British Government’s recall of monies meant for our social cash transfer which were sitting idle in a minimum risk interest bearing account at Zanaco as per your disbursement guidelines,” Mr. Shakafuswa said.

The British High Commissioner must explain irregularities surrounding the £ 25 million given to Conservation Farming Unit (CFU) whose programme was not implemented in 2016. — Shakafuswa .