4 December 2008
editorial
THE rainy season, not withstanding its positive agricultural benefits, can sometimes be difficult and unpredicatable.
There may be too much of rain or none at all. When there is too much of it it sweeps away crops in fields, erodes roads or forces bridges to curve in.
In villages, there are greater challenges in food management in the wet period of the year than any other time.
In fact legend has it that many kin and kith cut down on unscheduled visits on the pretext that everyone needs to be around to work in the field. But the real reason visits are discouraged is simply that during the rainy season there is very little food to go round.
Zambia today faces a similar situation as the hypothetical example above. The country expected a bumper maize harvest, but things turned out quite differently. There is a maize defict of the country's staple food, whose stocks are expected to run out by the end of February.
Not to be outdone, the Government has quickly moved in and ordered the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) to release the grain from strategic reserves.
This action will achieve two obectives: There will be enough maize to go round, and the soaring price of mealie meal should stabilise.
But beyond that the Government has taken yet another proactive commendable step: A task force has been put together to monitor the rising food prices and provide further interventions to ensure that more maize is available in the country to stem possible hunger.
Admittedly, this is a difficult time. The Government therefore needs support from every one, individuals, institutions and above all, politicians.
At individual level, farmers especially in the rural areas who may have kept the grain either for a rainy day or export, should guard the crop -it is badly needed at home.
Politicians, particularly in the opposition, should act above board. This is a national matter that calls for level headedness and will require everyone to work with the Government.
Irrational actions such as the anti-food protests that are being advocated will be retrogressive and will not in any way provide the needed solution.
Abrasive political statements simply meant to deride the dispensation are misplaced as the sitiuation calls for seriousness and concerted efforts from every Zambian.
What is soothing however, is the assurance from Information Minister and Chief Government spokesperson Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha that the situation is under total control and does not derseve the situation to be declared a national disaster.
So as the task force begins work, it needs spiritual, moral and physical support. The issue of food concerns every one regardless of their religious, politcal or other affliations.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Times of Zambia. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
