FERTILISER FIASCO

GOVERNMENT is clearly in panic mode over the distribution of fertiliser as farmers throughout the country warn of a disaster.

This explains why the Ministry of Agriculture in panic has now written to Agrizam Investment Limited to explain why it was failing to meet its side of the bargain.

Agrizam Investment Limited was one of the companies that was awarded a contract for the supply, delivery warehousing and distribution of 29, 181.45 metric tonnes of Compound D and 29, 933.45 metric tonnes of Urea.

In the letter to the managing director of Agrizam, Ministry of Agriculture Permanent Secretary Green Mbozi has complained over the slow pace at which the company was delivering and distributing fertiliser in Eastern Province.

Mr Mbozi has since implored Agrizam Investment Limited to hasten the delivery and distribution of fertiliser and abide by the deadline of November 30, 2022.

Yet, the situation did not need to come to this had the government maintained the open tender system that had been in place for years and had seen fertiliser reaching the receiving farmers on time.

The new dawn administration instead claimed the system in place was riddled with corruption and sought to streamline the supply chain.

But in doing so, it has failed to identify the bad eggs in the fertiliser supply chain and sidelined all the companies, including those with the capacity to do so.

The companies that Government handpicked to supply fetiliser definitely lack the capacity.

As our sources have noted, the delay to deliver fertiliser is a result was as a result of Government’s decision to engage briefcase suppliers who did not have the commodity and were negotiating with established suppliers.

According to our sources, Agrizam Investment was frantically trying to procure the fertiliser from suppliers who have more than 70, 000 metric tonnes in stock at the minimum in their warehouses but were left out of the bidding process.

Concern has already been raised over the delayed start to the distribution of fertiliser which is genuine.

Former Agriculture Minister David Mubumba, who is Mwense Member of Parliament has sent an “SoS” to Government to ensure that fertiliser is distributed as Luapula Province has not yet received any through the Farmer Input Support Programme.

Mr Mabumba said in an interview that the province had not received a single bag and that he was worried that the province would be hit by hunger since the government was not showing the will to cater for the farmers.

Paramount Chief Mpezeni also reported last week that Government has not started the delivery and the distribution of fertiliser in Eastern Province and farmers are now anxious as the rainy season is just about to start

The paramount chief of the Ngoni people said there has not been a single bag of fertiliser that had reached any district in the region and has appealed to the Minister of Agriculture, Mr Mtolo Phiri to assure farmers that the farm inputs would be delivered before the onset of the rains.

With all the confusion over the distribution of fertiliser, only a miracle could save the country from a looming disaster as the farmers race against time.

THE PEOPLE’S PAPER; TRUTH, ACCURACY AND BALANCE